Satellite

May 8 was supposed to be a ribbon cutting. Delta Interfaith—a church-based community organizing group—had spent months planning an event to mark fiber reaching Lake Providence, the main town in East Carroll Parish. Jonathan Chambers, CEO at rural operator Conexon Connect, was due to come with a schedule in hand for building into neighborhoods. Veneeth Iyengar, head of Louisiana’s broadband office would be there too.

SpaceX recently filed comments in the Federal Communications Commission’s open docket looking at the Universal Service Fund with a recommendation that the FCC should sunset the High-Cost Fund and eventually eliminate it. This is one of the four major components of USF, with an annual budget of $4.5 billion. SpaceX argues that Starlink has now solved rural broadband connectivity issues with ubiquitous broadband available throughout the country.

After a year of rebidding and guidance changes, the U.S. broadband industry breathed a sigh of relief when the National Telecommunications and Information Administration announced it had approved the vast majority of final state Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment proposals, opening the door for funding to flow.

Amazon is planning to deploy a new direct-to-device satellite constellation using Globalstar’s spectrum, it told the Federal Communications Commission. The company didn’t say how many units it would launch or what timeline it was aiming for, but said it had already developed special antenna systems designed for Globalstar’s spectrum holdings in the L-band, S-band, and 1.6/2.5 GigaHertz spectrum holdings. 

Europe’s broadband story can look close to complete from a national coverage chart. Fiber networks are expanding, gigabit targets are embedded in policy, and many households now have much faster fixed broadband than they did a few years ago. The harder question is what happens at the edge of that progress. Starlink’s role as a low-Earth orbit broadband provider is clearest in those remaining gaps. Across Europe, the service is most visible where fixed networks are delayed, weaker, difficult to extend, or needed as backup.

The European Commission adopted a proposal for the selection of mobile satellite service providers who will be authorised to use the harmonised 2 GHz frequency band beyond 2027, when the current licenses expire. Spectrum for mobile satellite services is a strategic asset for enabling innovative commercial use, and for security and defence. The Commission proposes to establish an EU-level selection procedure for the assignment of this spectrum.

Nebraska is reopening bidding for the Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment program after some tentative grant winners refused to sign contracts with the state. The Nebraska Broadband Office said it would publish a new map outlining the 1,735 remaining eligible locations in the coming weeks. NBO said its new round would aim to “promote competition between internet providers with a focus on quality and end-user experience.” The state confirmed the seven ISPs that have signed their agreements; they include:

SpaceX’s highly anticipated S-1 filing is the latest reminder that Starlink Mobile’s ambitions go beyond filling dead zones in mostly rural areas. “While we expect Starlink Mobile service today to be most impactful for customers in remote areas uncovered by terrestrial mobile networks … we will compete to be the preferred connectivity experience to our customers no matter where they are located, whether in rural, suburban, or urban areas,” SpaceX said in the filing. Those ambition

Satellite communications are connecting the world and delivering global access to information. While Geostationary orbit satellites have served a valuable connectivity mission for decades, low- and medium- Earth satellite constellations in non-Geostationary orbits offer new opportunities that complement existing services. Importantly: there’s plenty of room for all LEO, MEO, and GEO operators in today's satellite industry.