(Credit: AST/Verizon)
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As SpaceX races to dominate satellite-to-phone services, Verizon is doubling down on rival AST SpaceMobile instead.
On Wednesday, Verizon announced it had signed a commercial agreement with the Texas-based AST SpaceMobile to supply satellite-to-phone connectivity starting next year.
Terms were kept under wraps. But the agreement promises to give Verizon customers a new way to remain connected in cellular dead zones by tapping AST’s orbiting satellites, which have been designed to power voice and video calls, along with data. Currently, Verizon subscribers on certain phones can receive only limited satellite-powered texting through partner Skylo.
Importantly, the deal solidifies Verizon’s relationship with AST after the two initially announced a “strategic partnership” last year. The partnership calls for Verizon to commit $100 million while giving AST access to a slice of its radio spectrum to power the satellite-to-phone services.
However, industry watchers have been waiting for an actual commercial agreement between the two. There was even speculation that Verizon could back out and tap SpaceX, which offers its cellular Starlink service through T-Mobile. Last month, Elon Musk's company also reached a $17 billion deal to acquire valuable radio spectrum for Boost Mobile’s parent, EchoStar, to upgrade the cellular Starlink system with even more capacity.
Wednesday’s agreement signals that Verizon is going all in on AST, even though it’s still months away from offering commercial service to users. In contrast, SpaceX already has over 650 cellular Starlink satellites in orbit and has been delivering service to T-Mobile users since January, first as a beta and then with a formal launch in July.
AT&T is also betting on AST; last year, the carrier announced its own commercial agreement that lasts until 2030. But the major challenge facing AST is launching enough satellites in time. It's using Blue Origin, India’s national space agency, and SpaceX as launch partners.
(Credit: AST)The company currently has only five of its “BlueBird” satellites in orbit, when it needs 45 to 60 to deliver continuous coverage in the US. AST was supposed to fly up a prototype FM1 satellite in August, the first second-generation BlueBird. However, the launch has been delayed until December or January.
Still, AST indicated last week it could send up a separate second-generation BlueBird in the coming weeks. In a tweet, the company noted: “BlueBird 7 is expected to ship to the Cape Canaveral launch site in October.” The same tweet also reiterated that AST expects to have 45 to 60 satellites in orbit by the end of next year.
In Wednesday’s announcement, AST also emphasized its tests show the company’s satellites can complete “direct voice and video calls, as well as two-way RCS messaging, between standard, unmodified smartphones.”
“A crystal-clear Voice over LTE (VoLTE) call was made from a smartphone on Verizon's network in Texas, connecting via an AST SpaceMobile satellite to another Verizon smartphone in New Jersey,” the company added. “These successful tests represent a significant leap in satellite-to-cellular technology and pave the way for a future of ubiquitous connectivity.”