AT&T, T-Mobile and Verizon CEOs addressed their satellite strategies at an investor event this week, tying direct-to-device competition to standardizing devices and spectrum-sharing.
Verizon CEO Dan Schulman said the goal is to avoid three separate sets of satellite standards and instead build one common set that can work across handsets and satellite players.
JV goal: one standards set across handsets and satellite players
Verizon CEO Dan Schulman said the companies want to create standards rather than three sets of standards for satellite players to work with. He added that the goal is a common set of standards that can be used across handsets and across different satellite players.
Schulman and the other CEOs spoke at JP Morgans Global Technology, Media and Communications Conference in Boston.
AT&T signals dual-track approach with AST SpaceMobile
AT&T said it plans to continue working with AST SpaceMobile in addition to the joint venture. AT&T CEO John Stankey said AT&T has had a great relationship with AST SpaceMobile.
Stankey said AST SpaceMobiles technology and approach are unique for direct-to-device, and that AST SpaceMobile is on track to produce the first direct-to-device product that is seamless and straightforward for consumers while extending the network. He also said the companies expect the joint venture will take some time to come together.
Spectrum-sharing and robust wholesale market as competition levers
Stankey said working together on standards and spectrum-sharing will result in a better service for customers. He also said it does not make sense for companies to lobby for different priorities on the handset deck for spectrum capabilities, and that handset-spectrum bifurcation would not be good for any of the companies.
The joint venture announcement said it aims to foster competition in the satellite provider landscape. Stankey said ensuring a robust wholesale market in satellite is a fundamental goal of the joint venture, and that this would mean multiple constellations to buy from, helping ensure capacity is delivered to customers.
Stankey said the joint venture would create a robust wholesale structure and help keep pricing in check, preventing a bottleneck where any single provider dictates pricing.
T-Mobiles satellite usage reality check amid multi-constellation talk
T-Mobile CEO Srinivasan Gopalan said SpaceX is T-Mobiles partner for its T-Satellite service. He said adoption and use of T-Satellite is low, citing May data that satellite usage was 0.0002% of T-Mobiles total network usage3 zeroes, he saidand that the low satellite usage indicates it is a complementary use case.
Gopalan said satellite usage is largely focused in national parks and that there has been little take-up as an a la cart add-on. He said customers buy satellite as part of a premium package, and that T-Satellite and similar services are expected to become a standard part of most premium offerings, with enough supply as those packages expand. He also said satellite connectivity is no longer expected to be a source of differentiation.