AT&T to lease spectrum to AST SpaceMobile for D2D

AT&T made its satellite calling ambitions official with a new FCC filing that would give startup AST SpaceMobile a lease to some of its 850MHz A and B Block spectrum as well as some of its lower 700MHz B and C Block spectrum.

"AST intends to provide broadband access directly to AT&T customer handsets that operate on the Leased Spectrum, without any modifications or the use of special chipsets, and without the buildout of any additional terrestrial wireless infrastructure," AT&T wrote in its request to the FCC. "This is expected to allow AT&T to provide space-based broadband coverage in its licensed areas, including temporary coverage following natural disasters."

The move isn't a surprise, given that AT&T has been increasingly public in its support of AST SpaceMobile's plans since Light Reading first disclosed the companies' relationship in the summer of 2020.

Figure 1: (Source: NASA)

Indeed, AT&T's networking chief, Chris Sambar, mentioned the operator's recent test with AST SpaceMobile during a keynote presentation this week at the Connect X trade show in New Orleans.

"AT&T is a company of firsts," Sambar said, arguing that AST SpaceMobile's successful test call over AT&T's spectrum was a historic step in the development of direct-to-device (D2D) satellite connectivity.

Multiple players and technologies

Apple helped pioneer the D2D sector with its new iPhone 14, which can connect to Globalstar's satellites via Globalstar's spectrum. But that service only supports text messaging, not voice calling.

T-Mobile and SpaceX, meanwhile, pushed the concept forward with a deal last summer aimed at gadgets beyond the iPhone.

SpaceX hopes to soon begin launching satellites that can conduct transmissions in T-Mobile's licensed spectrum bands. That would allow the companies to connect T-Mobile customers' existing phones to SpaceX satellites. The companies hope to begin testing the technology later this year.

For its part, AST SpaceMobile also hopes to use operators' existing spectrum holdings to connect unmodified smartphones to its satellites.

However, as AT&T noted in its filing, AST SpaceMobile requires the FCC to approve the use of AT&T's terrestrial spectrum licenses for phone-to-satellite communications. The agency has opened a proceeding into that topic with the intent of encouraging US companies to pioneer the emerging technology.

Making the case

"The instant spectrum manager leases [with AST SpaceMobile] serve the public interest and promote fundamental commission policy goals," AT&T wrote in its filing.

"AT&T's terrestrial network already covers over 290 million Americans and more than 2.91 million square miles. In collaboration with AST, it expects to provide mobile broadband to unserved and underserved areas covered by the Leased Spectrum," the operator added. "Moreover, with AST's advanced satellite technology, this SCS [supplemental coverage from space] will be provided without harmful interference to adjacent or co-channel networks. In other words, the AT&T/AST collaboration will use spectrum efficiently."

A spectrum lease agreement with AT&T is one of several important steps AST SpaceMobile must make in the coming months and years to begin offering commercial services. Aside from regulatory approvals, the company must also obtain the funding necessarily to launch its planned satellite constellation. AST SpaceMobile hopes to launch five satellites in the first quarter of 2024.

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— Mike Dano, Editorial Director, 5G & Mobile Strategies, Light Reading | @mikeddano