SpaceX & T-Mobile Plans to Bring Satellite Connectivity to Smartphone

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Elon Musk got on stage with T-Mobile CEO Mike Sievert on Thursday for an announcement. He said SpaceX is working with the carrier to entirely finish cellular dead zones. Muck claimed that next-generation Starlink satellites are scheduled to launch in 2023. It would allow people to communicate directly with phones. Users can text messages, make calls, and essentially stream video without the need for cell towers.

Musk also promised that most of the currently available phones are expected to use the option. Consumers don’t need to buy any additional devices. It is a major announcement from the carrier because AT&T and Verizon don’t offer such options. Meanwhile, SpaceX and T-Mobile aren’t the only companies using the existing cell spectrum for satellites to directly communicate with cell phones.

Moreover, the AST Space-Mobile company has promised for years that it will offer broadband to phones from space. Lynk Global has already established satellite cell towers to send text messages from normal phones. Both companies were immediately seeking to get in on a similar contest. The Verge reported that the CEO of Lynk Global, Charles Miller, delivered his words during an interview.

The Collaboration of Lynk with Global Carriers

Miller said the company has admired the validation and the attention that is implementing this technology. The primary objective of Lynk is similar to SpaceX’s as collaborating with various carriers around the world. It would allow its customers to send texts using a satellite network, while it is still in the development process. Tech has its own importance during natural disasters and emergencies.

Keep in mind that wildfires, hurricanes, earthquakes, and flooding can destroy traditional mobile cellular networks. It is considered a perfect backup for everybody working on Earth. This tech allows communication using your phones during the unavailability of cell towers. It is a more reliable option to save lives. However, the approach of Miller is much similar to the approaches of Musk and Sievert.

Satellite-to-Phone Market Will Get a Boost

Moreover, Lynk became the leader in the market sending text messages to an unchanged cell phone from space in 2020. The executive vice president of AST, Scott Wisniewski issued a similar statement. He said our CEO basically tweeted about his happiness as he focused on this original massive market and its importance. He also predicted that the satellite-to-phone connection market will boost significantly.

The service of AST is considered more aspiring compared to the announcement from T-Mobile. Sievert said T-Mobile will hopefully deliver data using the satellites of SpaceX. The key objective of AST is to operate both 4G and 5G networks. However, the concept of broadband will get a considerable boost to send texts and make calls from remote locations.

The Plan of SpaceX & T-Mobile is Limited to the US

Meanwhile, Wisniewski said phones can go out of service more frequently or experience poor coverage issues. T-Mobile also highlighted a similar point. The plan of SpaceX and T-Mobile is significantly bound to the United States and its territories. SpaceX is offering its wireless spectrum service to other carriers and international agencies to own and operate.

However, AST and Lynk believe additional deals are essential for the company to work anywhere outside the United States. AST has received investment and a significant deal for 5 years with one of the world’s largest cell providers, Vodafone. The company has also received investment from a mobile carrier in Japan, Rakuten. Miller said Lynk is currently testing its satellite services in 10 countries.