Overview
- Amazon said it plans to buy Globalstar, a small satellite operator with globally authorized spectrum, and the FCC chair signaled he is open-minded about the deal.
- Globalstar runs a direct-to-device network that links smartphones without a dish for texts, voice, and emergency help, including the SOS feature on Apple iPhones.
- The purchase gives Amazon spectrum and immediate handset reach, which supports a go-to-market plan focused on distribution rather than copying SpaceX’s build-and-launch model.
- SpaceX is preparing a large IPO this year, and Starlink already serves more than 10 million users with a constellation above 10,000 satellites that drives most of SpaceX’s revenue and profit.
- Amazon’s Kuiper has launched 243 of 3,236 planned satellites and has used outside rockets such as SpaceX’s Falcon 9, underscoring how hard and slow technical catch-up will be.