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NASDAQ:ASTS News 13 June 2025 - 22 July 2025

Smartphones vs. Satellite Phones: Are Off-Grid Cell Phones Killing the Satellite Phone?

Smartphones vs. Satellite Phones: Are Off-Grid Cell Phones Killing the Satellite Phone?

Apple launched Emergency SOS via satellite on the iPhone 14 series in late 2022 using Globalstar’s LEO network. Samsung Galaxy S25, launched in 2025, is the first commercially available phone to include Snapdragon Satellite for two-way messaging via Iridium’s LEO constellation, with Android 15 native support. Bullitt Group’s Bullitt Satellite Messenger rolled out in Q1 2023, enabling two-way SMS on the Motorola Defy 2 and CAT S75 via Skylo GEO satellites. Huawei Mate 60 Pro (2023) added two-way satellite texting and satellite voice calling via BeiDou’s Tiantong GEO network, requiring careful skyward pointing and delivering low bandwidth. By the end
22 July 2025
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Global Next-Gen Networking Developments (June–July 2025): 5G, 6G & Wi‑Fi 7 News Roundup

Global Next-Gen Networking Developments (June–July 2025): 5G, 6G & Wi‑Fi 7 News Roundup

Global telecom equipment revenues fell about 11% in 2024 and are expected to be essentially flat in 2025 as market conditions stabilize per Dell’Oro Group. MTN Consulting projects global telecom capex declining from $314 billion in 2023 to about $280 billion by 2028. Ericsson’s June 2025 Mobility Report projects 5G subscriptions reaching about 2.9 billion by end of 2025, roughly one-third of all mobile subscriptions, with potential to reach 6.3 billion by 2030. 5G networks are expected to carry 80% of global mobile data traffic by 2030, up from about 35% at the end of 2024. Over 80% of surveyed
9 July 2025
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Space News Digest: July 1, 2025 / Updated: 2025, July 1st, 12:02 CET

Space News Digest: July 1, 2025 / Updated: 2025, July 1st, 12:02 CET

The Vera Rubin Observatory began its Legacy Survey of Space and Time (LSST) with first light and a 3.2-gigapixel camera, aiming to image the southern sky every few days and catalog over 40 billion objects. Perseverance completed its 30th Martian rock analysis on a sample named Kenmore, using the gaseous Dust Removal Tool to study its interior mineralogy. Perseverance detected clay-bearing bedrock on Jezero Crater’s rim, suggesting ancient water activity about 4 billion years ago. Curiosity captured a 360-degree panorama of Gale Crater, providing detailed context for ongoing geological investigations. FireSat plans deployment of over 50 satellites by 2029; FIRENET
1 July 2025
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Space News Roundup: Satellite Internet, Climate Monitoring, and the Expanding Role of Space Technology (June 30, 2025) / Updated: 2025, June 30th, 14:21 CET

Space News Roundup: Satellite Internet, Climate Monitoring, and the Expanding Role of Space Technology (June 30, 2025) / Updated: 2025, June 30th, 14:21 CET

Starlink, SpaceX’s satellite internet constellation, now has over 5 million customers in 125 countries, with rivals including Eutelsat OneWeb, Globalstar, and Amazon’s Project Kuiper and government-led IRIS2 and QianFan programs. Vodafone and AST SpaceMobile formed SatCo, a Luxembourg-based joint venture aiming to deliver direct-to-device satellite connectivity across Europe by 2026, integrating with 4G/5G networks. MTG-S1, Europe’s next-generation Meteosat Third Generation Sounder, carries the Sentinel-4 payload for air quality and atmospheric monitoring over Europe and North Africa, and will launch on a SpaceX Falcon 9 with major European industry partners Thales Alenia Space, Airbus, GMV, and SENER. Japan’s GOSAT-GW climate satellite
30 June 2025
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Starlink’s Sky‑High Cell Service—How T‑Mobile’s October Data Launch Could Obliterate Dead Zones and Rewrite Mobile Internet Forever

Starlink’s Sky‑High Cell Service—How T‑Mobile’s October Data Launch Could Obliterate Dead Zones and Rewrite Mobile Internet Forever

On 1 October 2025, T-Mobile and SpaceX will enable third‑party app data for a curated list of apps (WhatsApp, X, Google, Apple, AccuWeather, AllTrails) after the commercial SMS/MMS debut on 23 July 2025. SpaceX has placed more than 650 direct‑to‑cell satellites in orbit, with 657 currently operational forming the initial U.S. mesh. U.S. coverage now spans about 500,000 square miles, with capacity projected to double by 2026 as more satellites with 2 GHz payloads launch. The FCC approved the service in November 2024 as a “public‑interest benefit” and said it can support 911 access in remote areas while deferring higher
24 June 2025
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No Signal? No Problem: Why Satellite Phones Are Booming in 2025

No Signal? No Problem: Why Satellite Phones Are Booming in 2025

In June 2025, T-Mobile began a nationwide beta of its “T-Satellite” service built on SpaceX Starlink technology, with a July 2025 rollout and plans to include it at no extra cost on high‑end plans and about $10/month for others. On June 19, 2025, Vodafone Idea and AST SpaceMobile announced a partnership to deliver 4G/5G access from space in India using AST’s BlueWalker 3 satellites to reach remote areas. The FCC Space Bureau accepted Globalstar’s petition in early June 2025 to launch a second‑generation LEO constellation called “C‑3” for direct‑to‑device services, with Apple owning about 20% of Globalstar and a 50‑satellite
21 June 2025
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Beyond Cell Coverage: The Ultimate 2025 Guide to Satellite Texting Services

Beyond Cell Coverage: The Ultimate 2025 Guide to Satellite Texting Services

In late 2022, Apple launched Emergency SOS via satellite on the iPhone 14 series, enabling two-way emergency texting via Globalstar satellites. As of iOS 17 and later, iPhone 14/15 users in supported regions can share their location and send basic non-emergency texts via satellite, with two years of free service after activation before a paid plan. Garmin’s inReach Mini 2 provides global two-way texting via the Iridium network, with plans from about $15/month to $65/month and devices typically priced around $350–$450. ZOLEO uses the Iridium network for global messaging, costs about $200 for the device, offers plans from roughly $20
20 June 2025
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D2D Gold Rush: The Race to Own the Sky-to-Phone Future (2025–2033)

D2D Gold Rush: The Race to Own the Sky-to-Phone Future (2025–2033)

In April 2023, AST SpaceMobile’s BlueWalker 3 demonstrated the first two-way voice call from an off-the-shelf smartphone (Samsung Galaxy S22) to a satellite. In November 2022, Apple launched Emergency SOS via Satellite on iPhone 14 using Globalstar, with the service free for two years. In September 2022, Lynk Global received the FCC license for commercial satellite-direct-to-phone services, enabling a 10-satellite initial constellation for SMS. 3GPP Release 17, frozen in 2022, formally added Non-Terrestrial Networks support so standard 5G devices can connect to satellites with adjusted timing and error correction. In 2024, Viasat and BSNL demonstrated two-way SMS connectivity using a
14 June 2025
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5G From Space: How Satellite Internet is Revolutionizing Global Connectivity

5G From Space: How Satellite Internet is Revolutionizing Global Connectivity

Starlink has over 6,700 satellites in orbit as of early 2025 and surpassed 4 million subscribers by late 2024 across 100+ countries. Starlink satellites orbit at about 550 km altitude and deliver typical download speeds of 50–200 Mbps with latency around 20–40 ms. Starlink Gen2 introduces inter-satellite laser links to route data between satellites, reducing reliance on ground gateways. SpaceX began testing Direct-to-Cell satellites in 2023–2024 to text ordinary phones using T-Mobile spectrum, with voice and data services planned for 2025. OneWeb’s first-generation constellation targets 648 satellites, with about 632 operational by late 2024, and it merged with Eutelsat to
13 June 2025
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