SpaceX signals fight over Big 3’s satellite D2D joint venture

What’s clear from the direct-to-device (D2D) joint venture announcement by AT&T, T-Mobile, and Verizon is: not much. It certainly raises more questions than it answers. For example: Is this JV real if there’s no definitive agreement yet? How will SpaceX respond? Will the Department of Justice (DoJ) allow it? When does T-Mobile’s exclusivity agreement with SpaceX/Starlink expire? And how big is the D2D market going to be once Amazon Leo, AST SpaceMobile, and others join Starlink? As for how SpaceX reacts, SpaceX President Gwynne Shotwell and VP of Satellite Policy David Goldman weighed in on social media, signaling their intent to fight. For instance, Goldman cited a LightShed blog saying, "The bigger question is whether the DOJ even allows it...Three high-margin competitors moving in parallel just as a new rival prepares to enter is the kind of pattern that raises real collusion concerns."