Satellite

SpaceX and T-Mobile are partnering to bring wireless phone service to remote areas with spotty coverage. T-Mobile CEO Mike Sievert and SpaceX founder Elon Musk announced the collaboration August 25, claiming the service will roll out in 2023 and work with existing phones. They're planning to provide text coverage "practically everywhere" in the continental US, Hawaii, parts of Alaska, Puerto Rico and territorial waters, according to T-Mobile. The companies will create a new network broadcast from Starlink’s satellites using T-Mobile bandwidth.

Starlink, Elon Musk’s internet-from-space service provided by SpaceX, is notifying customers with some good news: their monthly subscriptions have been reduced in response to “local market conditions.” “The price reduction factors in your local market conditions and is meant to reflect parity in purchasing power across our customers,” a notice to customers reads. The situation in the US, where the dollar has been surging against foreign currencies, is less clear. 

I was surprised to find out by an FCC press release that agency leadership had suddenly reversed course on an $885 million infrastructure award that Elon Musk’s Starlink won in 2020 to provide high-speed Internet service to unconnected Americans.

Omnispace, based in Tysons, Virginia, wants to be the first company to deliver a global 5G non-terrestrial network with connectivity directly to mobile devices from its low-earth orbit (LEO) satellites. The company believes the future of communications is hybrid — where satellites extend and augment terrestrial mobile networks.

The Federal Communications Commission withdrew nearly $900 million in subsidies that had been granted to satellite operator Starlink to bring the internet to 642,000 remote, rural locations. The FCC subsidy was key anchor revenue for a new satellite broadband constellation that has to heavily subsidize customer terminals — priced in most markets at $599 — in order to expand the service. The FCC, in reversing a December 2020 decision, called proposals from Starlink and another subsidy candidate “risky," and questioned Starlink’s ability to deliver a reliable and affordable offer.

In an effort to promote United States leadership in the emerging space economy, the Federal Communications Commission voted to open a proceeding on the economic potential and policy questions related to servicing, assembly, and manufacturing taking place beyond the earth’s atmosphere. This Notice of Inquiry will examine the opportunities and challenges of space missions like satellite refueling, inspecting and repairing in-orbit spacecraft, capturing and removing debris, and transforming materials through manufacturing while in space.

The Federal Communications Commission permits use of the 17.3-17.7 GHz band by geostationary satellite orbit (GSO) space stations in the fixed-satellite service (FSS). The FCC also permits limited GSO FSS use of the 17.7-17.8 GHz band on an unprotected basis with respect to fixed service operations. Permitting use of the 17.3-17.8 GHz band to include FSS downlinks increases intensive and efficient use of the band and provides additional downlink capacity for high-throughput satellite communications.

SpaceX filed a letter to the Federal Communications Commission on July 29 in response to Viasat's previous claims that the company is unable to fulfill the requirements of its Rural Digital Opportunity Fund (RDOF) award. According to SpaceX, Viasat is trying to protect its legacy technology through influence the FCC to limit competition. The company also said that recent data from Ookla shows Starlink is able to provide the speeds necessary for RDOF funding, which exceed Viasat's performance.

On July 13, Viasat wrote to the Federal Communications Commission regarding SpaceX's Rural Digital Opportunity Fund (RDOF) commitments. "Viasat writes to update the record with respect to the continued inability of the authorized Starlink system to satisfy SpaceX’s RDOF commitments," said the letter.

Eutelsat Communications SA and OneWeb Ltd. are set to combine in an all-share deal valuing the UK satellite operator at $3.4 billion, a step toward creating a European champion to rival the likes of Elon Musk’s SpaceX. OneWeb shareholders will hold 50% of Eutelsat, which will continue to be listed in Paris and will ask to be listed on the London Stock Exchange.  Both the UK and French governments have stakes in OneWeb and Eutelsat respectively, and the UK will continue to own a special share, giving it certain veto rights over strategic decisions such as the location of the firm’s headquart