The three top mobile carriers in the U.S. are joining together in a new joint venture aimed at simplifying providing direct-to-device (D2D) services to their customers. AT&T, T-Mobile, and Verizon announced the move Thursday to form a new JV that would pool spectrum resources and take a unified approach to D2D services.
The three MNOs said the JV will make joint investment in using satellite-based D2D technologies to address coverage gaps, bring together IP and terrestrial spectrum, and create industry specifications.
The MNOs said the JV will enable more competition, saying “more satellite service providers will gain opportunities to compete, invest, and grow.”
Satellite D2D providers AST SpaceMobile and Skylo were optimistic about the announcement, and one analyst pointed to the importance of the MNOs targeting spectrum pooling and standardization.
All three of the carriers have already taken different approaches to working with satellite players for D2D. T-Mobile offers service with SpaceX; AT&T is set to offer service with AST Spacemobile; Verizon offers service on some Android phones with Skylo and has a commercial agreement with AST SpaceMobile as well.
“With the expansion of satellite constellations, soon to be supported by multiple space-based operators, this JV will use expanded capacity and improved performance to deliver the best possible service to customers. This partnership will also make it easier for satellite operators to deliver a broader range of direct-to-device experiences and help accelerate innovation across the wireless and satellite industries,” T-Mobile President and CEO Srini Gopalan said in a statement.
The MNOs said that existing carrier-satellite agreements will remain in place and the partners can continue connectivity efforts independently.
“This partnership gives customers more options, continues to strengthen America’s infrastructure and increases competition for satellite providers,” Verizon CEO Dan Schulman said in a statement.
This push to work with multiple satellite operators comes as the FCC this week approved EchoStar’s spectrum sale to SpaceX, which will unlock new capabilities for future versions of SpaceX’s Direct-to-Cell constellation. Amazon has moved to secure mobile satellite services (MSS) spectrum of its own, entering the D2D market with a deal to buy Globalstar.
Satellite Players and Analyst Respond
Both Skylo and AST SpaceMobile who work with the MNOs had positive responses to the JV.
“Any move that gives operators a stronger voice in that future should be welcomed. Satellite should strengthen the mobile ecosystem, not fragment it,” commented Skylo CEO and co-founder Parth Trivedi said in a statement.
“The real significance is that telcos are recognizing the strategic value they already bring to the satellite ecosystem: spectrum, subscribers, roaming, service quality, billing, trust and customer experience. Those assets will be essential if direct-to-device connectivity is going to scale beyond the successful early services we’ve seen, and become part of everyday mobile life,” Trivedi said.
AST SpaceMobile CEO and Chairman Abel Avellan also applauded the move as well.
“AST SpaceMobile is happy to see how the industry is preparing to enable space-based cellular broadband connectivity to every American,” Avellan said. “We plan to be a key enabler of this transformation as we continue to grow our global network in Low-Earth Orbit and expand available spectrum to our network.”
Joe Madden, a mobile industry analyst with Mobile Experts, told Via Satellite the move to form a JV was a bit surprising from the MNOs because they all have separate satellite agreements in place. Madden said the keys to the joint venture are pooling spectrum and collaborating on specifications.
“These three companies all want a ‘more seamless experience,’ meaning that the ability to hand over from cellular to satellite networks will be useful, and that kind of standardization requires economy of scale and cooperation between competitors,” Madden said.
He also sees implications for Verizon and AT&T’s work with AST SpaceMobile Both MNOs are both working with and providing spectrum AST SpaceMobile, and each operator owns the rights to 850 MHz spectrum in different regions of the country.
“This joint venture is a more formalized agreement between AT&T and Verizon which will help to keep that band straight and will allow each company to monetize the D2D service appropriately,” Madden said.
