Facebook Moves One Step Closer to Light-Based Wireless Communication - The New York Times

On a related note, see Facebook Takes Flight (The Verge)

"Because of all these benefits, building on Facebook’s proof of concept holds tremendous potential not just for remote areas, but for meeting increased data demand all over the world, said Kamran Kiasaleh, an optical communications scientist at the University of Texas at Dallas who was not involved in the study.

The technology fits in with Facebook’s plans to beam internet access down from the skies using drones. With laser transmitters and arrays of these light detectors, drones could exchange data with one another and with ground stations. Indoors, these detectors could provide high data rates to mobile devices."

Facebook Moves One Step Closer to Light-Based Wireless Communication - The New York Times