Europe's Largest Telecom Operators Unite to Bid for Satellite Spectrum in Response to Musk's Starlink

Stock News10-19

Several major European mobile operators have reached a consensus to form an industry consortium to bid for satellite spectrum and launch direct-to-device satellite services, aiming to counter competitive pressure from Elon Musk's Starlink.

According to a statement released on Monday, Deutsche Telekom AG, Orange SA, Vodafone Group PLC (VOD.US), and Telefonica SA are exploring a joint bid for a portion of spectrum resources that the European Union plans to reserve for local operators. According to prior reports, the goal of this plan is to enhance Europe's autonomous satellite capabilities.

It is understood that this cooperation model is benchmarked against the partnership agreement reached between U.S. carriers AT&T (T.US), Verizon (VZ.US), and Deutsche Telekom's subsidiary T-Mobile (TMUS.US). Musk's SpaceX is steadily advancing its competing mobile business, planning to offer similar services based on the Starlink satellite constellation.

The European Union is weighing new rules for satellite access in the 2 GHz band, planning to reserve one-third of the band for local enterprises and another third exclusively for emergency critical communications. The EU hopes to reduce dependence on American companies for strategically important technologies. This new set of rules will govern direct-to-device satellite services, a sector currently dominated by Starlink, which can provide text messaging, data, and voice call services directly to ordinary mobile phones via satellites in orbit.

Spectrum licenses currently held by Viasat (VSAT.US) and EchoStar (ECHO.US) will expire in 2027. The four aforementioned operators will build ground infrastructure and operating systems, then partner with a yet-to-be-selected satellite provider to enhance their own network coverage and sell coverage services on a wholesale basis.

U.K.-based Vodafone has previously established a joint venture with U.S. satellite company AST SpaceMobile (ASTS.US), which also provides direct-to-device satellite services. The statement said that this potential joint bid will not replace existing partnerships already established between mobile operators and satellite providers.

Disclaimer: Investing carries risk. This is not financial advice. The above content should not be regarded as an offer, recommendation, or solicitation on acquiring or disposing of any financial products, any associated discussions, comments, or posts by author or other users should not be considered as such either. It is solely for general information purpose only, which does not consider your own investment objectives, financial situations or needs. TTM assumes no responsibility or warranty for the accuracy and completeness of the information, investors should do their own research and may seek professional advice before investing.

Comments

We need your insight to fill this gap
Leave a comment