Credit: Tushar Mehta / Android Authority
TL;DR
- SpaceX confirmed it will build a terrestrial mobile network alongside Starlink satellites.
- The company says Starlink Mobile will launch by the end of next year with next-gen satellites.
- SpaceX believes its hybrid network can outperform traditional carriers by eliminating dead zones.
When reports emerged that SpaceX was exploring a Starlink-branded mobile carrier, it sounded like an ambitious long-term goal. At the time, the company had reportedly been pitching investors on a consumer wireless service, backed by its $17 billion acquisition of EchoStar’s 65MHz of spectrum and a possible terrestrial network to complement Starlink’s satellites. Just weeks later, SpaceX has gone from hinting at those plans to openly confirming them.
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