Globalstar and EchoStar – two veteran satellite network operators – have been kicking up plenty of speculation in recent months over how each might play a role in some kind of advanced 5G service.

And while the two companies have remained relatively tightlipped about the specifics of their respective plans, the hints and clues are beginning to mount.

'Terms agreement'

For Globalstar, the company continues to offer tantalizing details about its mysterious "terms agreement" with an unidentified customer. Most recently, Globalstar announced the mystery customer will spend roughly $310 million to purchase 17 new Globalstar satellites.

"Globalstar is acquiring the satellites to provide continuous satellite services to the potential customer under the terms agreement," the company said.

Figure 1: (Source: NASA)

That spending is on top of the $111.4 million Globalstar received from the mystery customer during 2021. As noted by analyst Tim Farrar with TMF Associates, Globalstar used those funds in part to set up operations stretching from Japan to New Zealand to Mexico.

"We find it hard to believe that Globalstar's undisclosed customer – be it Apple or another big tech like Amazon – remains 'potential' given the near half-billion dollar commitment it is agreeing to with Globalstar, even before service commences," wrote the financial analysts at B. Riley Securities in a recent note to investors. "As such, we look forward to continued clues and reveals in 2022 to help quantify implications for Globalstar."

'What's the plan?'

Charlie Ergen, the chairman of EchoStar, is offering some equally tantalizing hints on how EchoStar might work with Dish Network – another company that counts Ergen as chairman. Dish is in the midst of building a nationwide 5G network across the US.

"There's a lot of cross-pollination in terms of opportunity," Ergen said on a Q4 earnings call of the potential tie-ups between EchoStar and Dish. "We see opportunities at EchoStar, and we realized that it might be beneficial with Dish or vice versa. And so I think – I just think you'll see opportunities for both the companies going forward, maybe in a way that we haven't in the past."

Indeed, EchoStar announced just last week that its longtime CEO Mike Dugan will be replaced with Hamid Akhavan, an executive who has worked with companies ranging from T-Mobile International to private equity firm Twin Point Capital. The move came just months after EchoStar scored more support for a possible satellite/terrestrial service in its S-band spectrum.

As noted in a Seeking Alpha transcript, all those moving parts at EchoStar prompted one analyst on the company's quarterly conference call to point out that there's "frustration in the marketplace today." Accordingly, "What's the plan?" he asked.

"I think we have lots of strategic things we can do," Ergen replied, adding that EchoStar will begin to "roll out a better vision or articulate a vision of where they're going to go" starting sometime this summer.

DoD goes to space

While EchoStar and Globalstar hint at possible services in the future, the US military said that it's making concrete steps toward a global satellite system today.

Specifically, the Space Development Agency, part of the US Department of Defense (DoD), announced that it awarded Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman and York Space Systems around $1.8 billion to build a network of 126 low-Earth orbit (LEO) satellites, with services launching in 2024. The goal? A "resilient, low-latency, high-volume data transport communication system."

According to the DoD, the network will serve as "the backbone" for its Joint All Domain Command and Control (JADC2) program. The Pentagon has previously hinted that JADC2 will ultimately connect "sensors with shooters across all domains, commands and services," and that it will rely heavily on 5G technologies.

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