Outernet, the startup that wants to bring broadcast internet to everyone for free, from space, has turned on its signal in sub-Saharan Africa.

The signal means that when its Lantern receivers are shipped next year, users in the region will be able to receive data instantly.

However, the tech-savvy will not even have to wait until then; as the signal is now being broadcast, anyone who builds their own receiver will be able to access the data straight away.

“Anyone who wants to take advantage of this signal right away can visit our website for instructions on how to build their own receiver,” Outernet said.

“When Lantern ships next summer, you will be able to plug it into a dish in order to receive this high speed signal.

“This is not required – Lantern will always receive its own data – though for increased data a user may add a dish to Lantern.”

The new signal now means that Outernet’s coverage spans three continents, as its first signal, covering North America and Europe, was turned on in August.

The organisation’s crowdfunding campaign, through which it has been selling Lantern units for $99 each, hit its $200,000 initial target within five days of it being live.

There are currently fewer than 70 hours of the campaign left, and $322,000 has been raised.

In what has been described as “shortwave radio for the digital age”, Outernet is trying to take the best of the web and broadcast it from space.

Cube satellites that broadcast radio waves from orbit will send information to Lantern receivers that act as a portable library.

The data, which will be selected by volunteers from the community, is turned into digital files such as webpages, news articles, ebooks and more. Any type of file can be received and stored on its internal drive.

For the content stored on the Lantern to be viewed, the Wi-Fi hotspot has to be turned on and connected to with a Wi-Fi enabled device.

When its crowdfunding campaign passed $300,000, the company also announced that it would be adding Android capability to its services.

“Reaching this milestone means we can invest in making Outernet compatible with Android set top boxes,” it said. “This makes it substantially easier and cheaper for anyone to build their own Outernet receiver.”

The company said that the milestone is important, as it will allow those who are not able to afford a Lantern to connect to its services.

“The ubiquity of Android set top boxes around the world means that millions of people will already have everything they need to receive Humanity’s Public Library.”

Images courtesy of Outernet.