Sept. 8 (UPI) — U.S. telecommunications company EchoStar announced Monday plans to sell spectrum licenses to SpaceX for $17 billion, allowing the aerospace company to expand its broadband service to cell phones via Starlink satellites.
The definitive agreement includes EchoStar’s AWS-4 and H-block spectrum licenses in exchange for $8.5 billion in cash and up to $8.5 billion in SpaceX stock. SpaceX will also pay about $2 billion in interest on EchoStar debt through November 2027.
The deal will allow SpaceX to expand upon its Starlink Direct to Cell constellation, which provides broadband cell service to phones globally. SpaceX launched its first Direct to Cell satellites in 2024 and currently has 600 satellites in low-earth orbit.
The constellation allows phones to send text messages and make phone and video calls, even in areas of the world with no traditional cell phone coverage.
“We’re so pleased to be doing this transaction with EchoStar as it will advance our mission to end mobile dead zones around the world,” said SpaceX President Gwynn Shotwell.
“In this next chapter, with exclusive spectrum, SpaceX will develop next-generation Starlink Direct to Cell satellites, which will have a step change in performance and enable us to enhance coverage for customers wherever they are in the world.”
EchoStar President and CEO Hamid Akhavan said direct-to-cell technology will “change the way the world communicates.”
SpaceX said the Direct to Cell constellation connects to its broader Starlink constellation of more than 8,000 satellites. Direct to Cell satellites orbit lower than other constellations, allowing cell phones on Earth to connect to higher orbiting satellites.
The company said the cell service works with any LTE cell phones with no changes to hardware or firmware.
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