(Reuters) : US startup Spacecoin said on Wednesday it had successfully sent secured information through space in what it said was a first for the industry as the firm tries to show it can offer an alternative to Starlink’s satellite internet service. But unlike SpaceX-owned Starlink, where one entity controls the network, Spacecoin plans to build a decentralised system that anyone can join, conducting payments and storing data without the need to go through other service providers. Spacecoin’s data travelled more than 7,000 km via satellite from Chile to the Azores in the test, conducted with Bulgarian microsatellite maker EnduroSat. CONTEXTThe satellite internet market is expanding thanks to growing consumer demand for broadband. While U.S. bank J.P. Morgan previously tested blockchain payments between satellites, Spacecoin’s is the first transaction to bypass terrestrial internet entirely.