Satellite direct-to-cell — connecting unmodified cell phones directly to satellites — has surged in activity, with major partnerships from Apple/Globalstar, SpaceX/T-Mobile, and Iridium/Qualcomm shaping the market ahead of SATELLITE 2023.
Andrew Cavalier of ABI Research projects 6.8 million satellite-to-cell connections by 2027: “Consolidations and partnerships will escalate throughout the industry and communication service providers that lack satcom in their arsenal will find themselves at a disadvantage.”
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Lynk, a pioneer in the space, has demonstrated the technology, has three “cell tower” satellites in space, and commercial agreements with 25 MNOs covering 41 countries. SpaceX’s second-generation Starlink satellites are designed with large phased array antennas to connect directly with T-Mobile phones in cellular spectrum. Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chip enables satellite messaging via Iridium on next-generation Android phones — demonstrated at CES in January.
Apple’s emergency SOS via Globalstar on iPhone 14 is already saving lives. Globalstar has allocated 85 percent of its network capacity to Apple services and ordered 17 new satellites from MDA to upgrade its infrastructure.
Maxime Puteaux of Euroconsult noted the shift: “These recent announcements demonstrate a next phase in the growing convergence between satellite and wireless industries. There is still a lot of hard work to do on the technical, regulatory and go-to-market front but clearly close collaboration is the only path to success.”
The FCC released a notice of proposed rulemaking to facilitate satellite use of terrestrial spectrum, and the SATELLITE 2023 program features multiple panels on satellite-to-cell technology, spectrum, and 3GPP standards integration. VS
