{"id":17353,"date":"2022-09-07T23:49:51","date_gmt":"2022-09-07T15:49:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp-productionenv-bjg9h2g2bgg5b8aa.southeastasia-01.azurewebsites.net\/news\/for-apple-and-other-companies-satellites-plus-cellphones-add-up-to-a-new-frontier\/"},"modified":"2022-09-07T23:49:51","modified_gmt":"2022-09-07T15:49:51","slug":"for-apple-and-other-companies-satellites-plus-cellphones-add-up-to-a-new-frontier","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/news\/for-apple-and-other-companies-satellites-plus-cellphones-add-up-to-a-new-frontier\/","title":{"rendered":"For Apple and other companies, satellites plus cellphones add up to a new frontier"},"content":{"rendered":"<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full-width\"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"630\" height=\"379\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/220907-phone2-630x379.jpg\" alt=\"Apple emergency SOS\" class=\"wp-image-720501\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/220907-phone2-630x379.jpg 630w, https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/220907-phone2-1260x759.jpg 1260w, https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/220907-phone2-768x463.jpg 768w, https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/220907-phone2-1536x925.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/220907-phone2.jpg 1793w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 630px) 100vw, 630px\"><figcaption>Apple\u2019s iPhone 14 is built to link up with satellites for an emergency SOS. (Apple Video)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Today\u2019s big iPhone reveal adds Apple to the list of companies aiming to combine the power of satellite communications with the power of everyday cellphones \u2014 a list that includes other tech heavyweights such as T-Mobile and SpaceX, Amazon and Verizon, OneWeb and AT&amp;T.<\/p>\n<p>Also on the list: a startup that\u2019s carving out a niche on the satellite-cellular frontier.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe\u2019re years ahead of anybody else, and so we\u2019re in a great position,\u201d said Charles Miller, co-founder and CEO of Virginia-based Lynk. \u201cWe\u2019ve been talking for a while about what a huge business this is, and a bunch of other companies are now starting to wake up.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Specialized satellite phones have been around for decades, but the new crop of space-based telecom services is meant to make use of the billions of smartphones that are produced for the general market.<\/p>\n<p>In some scenarios \u2014 for example, with the Amazon-Verizon and OneWeb-AT&amp;T deals \u2014 telecom operators could use satellites to connect with cell towers on the back end, in remote areas where it isn\u2019t practical to run fiber cables. That\u2019s what\u2019s known as cellular backhaul.<\/p>\n<p>In other scenarios, companies are providing antenna-equipped terminals that can select between traditional cellular service and satellite service when voice\/data links are needed at remote sites \u2014 or when a disaster cripples cell service. That\u2019s what Kirkland, Wash.-based Kymeta Corp. is doing with its hybrid satellite-cellular system.<\/p>\n<p>The scenario that\u2019s getting the most attention nowadays involves direct-to-phone satellite communications: Instead of going through a cell tower or ground-based, antenna-equipped terminals, signals can be beamed back and forth directly between satellites in low Earth orbit and the iPhone or Android phone in your hand.<\/p>\n<p>That direct satellite link would serve as a last-resort connection if the cellphone user is stuck without any other sort of coverage \u2014 for example, if you\u2019re lost on a mountain trail, or stuck with a flat tire on a rural road. That\u2019s what Apple will do with its new iPhone 14, and what T-Mobile is aiming to do with SpaceX\u2019s Starlink network. \u201cIt\u2019s going to massively improve people\u2019s convenience, and it\u2019s going to save lives,\u201d SpaceX CEO Elon Musk said when the T-Mobile-SpaceX deal was revealed.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"iPhone 14 Revealed With SOS Satellite Feature (Watch It Here)\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/ON7UCkfxAo8?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen=\"\"><\/iframe><br \/>\n<\/figure>\n<p>Apple\u2019s emergency SOS plan is aimed squarely at safety: The iPhone 14 will be programmed to show you where to point your phone to link up with overhead satellites in Globalstar\u2019s constellation. There\u2019ll be an interface that can guide you through a series of buttons to send the appropriate alert, whether you\u2019re injured, stranded or lost.<\/p>\n<p>On the back end, Apple and its partners have set up a system to deal with 9-1-1 issues when needed \u2014 for example, to relay a text message to emergency agencies via voice. And if you\u2019re in an area without cell coverage, you can send your location to loved ones via Apple\u2019s FindMy feature.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt took years to make this vision a reality,\u201d Ashley Williams, Apple\u2019s manager for satellite modeling and simulation, said during today\u2019s reveal. Apple\u2019s iPhone 14 hits the market this month, but the satellite-based emergency SOS feature won\u2019t be available until November.<\/p>\n<p>You might think all these high-profile deals would make a startup CEO like Lynk\u2019s Miller nervous. For the past five years, Miller and his team have been gearing up to provide direct-to-phone satellite service for texting \u2014 a concept that only now seems to be taking hold. The truth is, Miller couldn\u2019t be more pleased.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhen you talk to people, and this is the first time they ever hear of it, they\u2019re going, \u2018Well, gosh, this is really new. Why have I never heard of it before?\u2019 And so, people are naturally skeptical,\u201d he told GeekWire. \u201cBut when a bunch of other really smart people start jumping in and doing it, that eliminates that question.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Lynk has already launched a series of test satellites, and in April, its first commercial-grade \u201ccell tower in space\u201d went into orbit with an assist from SpaceX. Three more satellites are due to go up later this year, clearing the way for commercial service.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Charles Miller, CEO and Co-Founder at Lynk Speaking at the SmallSat Symposium 2022\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/UfTETgl2qU0?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen=\"\"><\/iframe><br \/>\n<\/figure>\n<p>Some regulatory and technical hurdles remain, but Miller said his company already has 15 contracts with mobile network operators around the world ready to go. Most of Lynk\u2019s telecom partners intend to offer satellite connectivity on a premium \u201cday pass\u201d basis. Others will \u201callow all their users to get our service as part of their plan for free,\u201d Miller said. (Apple says its emergency SOS plan will be free to iPhone 14 purchasers for the first two years.)<\/p>\n<p>Even though Lynk is focusing exclusively on store-and-forward texting for now, Miller thinks the satellite-cellular market will be easily big enough to accommodate his company as well as other players.<\/p>\n<p>Texas-based AST SpaceMobile is due to join the fray in the 2023-2024 time frame with a space-based cellular broadband network that should be accessible to standard mobile phones. In July, AST SpaceMobile and Nokia announced a five-year partnership to develop technologies for 4G and 5G connectivity. Real-world trials could begin as early as this year with the launch of a test satellite.<\/p>\n<p>And on the eve of Apple\u2019s announcement, China\u2019s Huawei Technologies said its next flagship smartphone will let users send short messages and map out routes via the BeiDou navigation satellite system.<\/p>\n<p>As limited as they are, Apple\u2019s newly announced plans for emergency SOS texting could fire up the market for satellite messaging even further, Lynk\u2019s Miller said.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThey\u2019ll whet people\u2019s appetite. \u2026 We think there\u2019s many orders of magnitude more messaging for regular commercial service, and it will get people to say they want more,\u201d Miller said. \u201cIt\u2019ll just get a huge number of people jazzed about this service, and as the leader in this, it\u2019s our job to bring that to the world.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Apple\u2019s iPhone 14 is built to link up with satellites for an emergency SOS. (Apple Video) Today\u2019s big iPhone reveal adds Apple to the list of companies aiming to combine the power of satellite communications with the power of everyday cellphones \u2014 a list that includes other tech heavyweights such as T-Mobile and SpaceX, Amazon [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[4359,4622,4524,4360,4589,20,442],"class_list":["post-17353","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news","tag-apple","tag-cell-phones","tag-cellular","tag-globalstar","tag-lynk","tag-satellite","tag-satellites"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17353"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=17353"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17353\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=17353"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=17353"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=17353"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}