{"id":5943,"date":"2025-03-04T23:41:45","date_gmt":"2025-03-04T15:41:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp-productionenv-bjg9h2g2bgg5b8aa.southeastasia-01.azurewebsites.net\/news\/vodafone-and-ast-spacemobile-partner-to-launch-satco-the-european-satellite-service\/"},"modified":"2025-03-04T23:41:45","modified_gmt":"2025-03-04T15:41:45","slug":"vodafone-and-ast-spacemobile-partner-to-launch-satco-the-european-satellite-service","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/news\/vodafone-and-ast-spacemobile-partner-to-launch-satco-the-european-satellite-service\/","title":{"rendered":"Vodafone and AST SpaceMobile Partner to Launch SatCo the European Satellite Service"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Vodafone<\/p>\n

Vodafone Group Plc (Vodafone), a leading European and African telecommunications company, and AST SpaceMobile, the company building the first and only space-based cellular broadband network accessible directly by everyday smartphones, designed for both commercial and government applications, have signed an agreement to create a jointly-owned European satellite service business (\u201cSatCo\u201d) to serve mobile network operators (MNOs) in all European markets.<\/p>\n

SatCo will seek to provide 100% geographic coverage in every part of Europe to give consumers and businesses access to secure space-based cellular broadband connectivity via their MNO.<\/p>\n

The new venture will exclusively distribute AST SpaceMobile\u2019s satellite services to European MNOs under a single turnkey arrangement. This will be underpinned by a full network management and network operations center capability, based in Europe, drawing on Vodafone\u2019s advanced engineering expertise. SatCo will build and run a network of ground stations to provide backhaul services from these MNOs across Europe to the satellite network in low Earth orbit.<\/p>\n

SatCo\u2019s solution will fully support European digital sovereignty. AST SpaceMobile\u2019s satellites already operate as remote radio heads where the core network capability remains with the MNO. SatCo builds on this by providing fully sovereign backhaul capabilities under Vodafone co-ownership, with European headquarters and management.<\/p>\n

Margherita Della Valle, Vodafone Group CEO said<\/strong>: \u201cVodafone\u2019s space-based mobile broadband will mean our customers can stay connected, wherever they are. Our new satellite company will be able to offer this pioneering technology to other European mobile operators through a turnkey service that combines Vodafone\u2019s leading network and engineering with AST SpaceMobile\u2019s \u2018antennas in the sky\u2019.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cTogether with Vodafone, we are poised to accelerate our commercialization plans across all of Europe, making true mobile broadband from space a reality,\u201d<\/em> said Abel Avellan, Founder, Chairman, and CEO of AST SpaceMobile<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

On January 27, 2025, Vodafone successfully made the world\u2019s first space-based mobile video call from an area without any mobile coverage on the recently launched BlueBirds satellites, supporting the company\u2019s aim to provide ubiquitous mobile coverage for its 340 million customers in 15 countries and its network partners in 45 more markets. Vodafone is spearheading the introduction of commercial space-based mobile broadband connectivity across Europe during 2025 and 2026.<\/p>\n

Operating from low Earth orbit, AST SpaceMobile is the only satellite technology in the world today that will offer mobile broadband directly to multiple 4G or 5G smartphones without the need for any specialized software device support or updates, working seamlessly as an extension of Vodafone\u2019s leading land-based networks.<\/p>\n

\n

Also Read: What are the Different Types of Satellite Services?<\/h4>\n<\/div>\n

Satellite is a complementary, bolt-on technology providing valuable coverage where no feasible mobile or fixed alternative exists at present. Together, the satellite service and terrestrial network will give Europe a communications infrastructure for use at any location, including mountains, or out at sea, at any time, as well as boosting overall resilience.<\/p>\n

On 19 February 2025, Vodafone, AST SpaceMobile, and the University of M\u00e1laga also launched a new space and land mobile broadband research and validation hub, supported by the Spanish Space Agency. Set to open by Summer 2025 at Vodafone\u2019s existing Innovation Centre in Malaga, the hub will develop integrated low Earth orbit space-based and land mobile broadband services. <\/p>\n

In support of its European expansion, AST SpaceMobile is also enhancing its presence in Spain with the recent opening of 5,600 square meters of manufacturing and office space in Barcelona. These strategic initiatives will enhance AST SpaceMobile\u2019s capabilities to serve the European market by increasing production capacity and accelerating the rigorous testing of its satellite and telecommunications systems<\/p>\n

Click here to know more about AST SpaceMobile’s Network and Technologies<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Vodafone Group Plc (Vodafone), a leading European and African telecommunications company, and AST SpaceMobile, the company building the first and only space-based cellular broadband network accessible directly by everyday smartphones, designed for both commercial and government applications, have signed an agreement to create a jointly-owned European satellite service business (\u201cSatCo\u201d) to serve mobile network operators […]<\/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":[50,26,42,20],"class_list":["post-5943","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news","tag-5g","tag-ground","tag-satcom","tag-satellite"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5943"}],"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=5943"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5943\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5943"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5943"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5943"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}