The Novaspace World Space Business Week event in Paris heard an expert panel talk about their Direct-to-Device (D2D) satellite plans.

Scott Wisniewski, President of AST SpaceMobile, told delegates that the stage his D2D business was now at was to move to revenue generation using its partnerships with the likes of Vodafone, Verizon and AT&T. AST is in the process of launching its BlueBird satellites into orbit.

Wisniewski said AST’s satellites were huge, and enabled a very large pipe, and very flexible services back to Earth. Satellite-based cellular has not been important in the past, but he saw a huge demand from AST’s partner terrestrial operators. However, he confirmed that the first of the next-generation BlueBirds was not yet ready for imminent launch. He said that by the end of 2026 there would be 13 launches from three rocket launch suppliers.

The panel, without exception, said that they believed that the demand from consumers for satellite connectivity was underestimated.

Karim Sabbagh, MD at UAE-based Space42, and speaking on behalf of its new joint-venture with Viasat (Equatys), told delegates that his aim was to reach those areas that were underserved or non-served. He said that the concept of paying a subscriber acquisition cost of around $150 (€127) per customer in terms of hardware in orbit, was far too expensive. “We have in mind nearer $3 per customer,” he stated.

Space42’s new joint venture with Viasat creates the industry-first space tower company model, implementing shared space and ground Non-Terrestrial-Network (NTN) infrastructure, lowering capital costs and improving spectrum utilisation for all participants, says the company.

Barbee Ponder, VP/regulatory Affairs at Globalstar, and working closely with Apple, said that the launch of replenishment satellites was planned for the upcoming year. Last year it announced its C3 scheme, its third Generation constellation, and a $1.5 billion investment for 48 additional satellites. Installation of the ground infrastructure is well ahead with an eventual 35 teleports.

Iridium’s Suzi McBride (COO) reminded delegates that her company had been around for many years, and was very much working itself and with partners globally for connectivity and improving its ability to connect with governments, first-responders and general customers. “We have a proven track record, and 500 partners,” she noted.

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Categories: Articles, Satellite

Tags: AST SpaceMobile, satellite, Viasat