WIREDGOV

The race to bring satellite calls and texts to ordinary smartphones has begun, after Ofcom today announced its final decisions about how the technology can be rolled out. 

• Standard smartphones to receive signal from space
• Ofcom enables satellite calls, texts and data to help eliminate mobile blackspots
• UK to be first country in Western Europe where mobile operators team up with satellite companies to deploy new space-age services

Mobile operators are now joining with satellite companies to deliver ‘direct-to-device services’ to everyday smartphones up and down the UK.

This involves satellites hundreds of miles above Earth beaming down signals to smartphones, so they can make calls, send texts and use data in ‘not-spots’ where there’s no mobile coverage. 
Until now, this has only been possible with specialist kit, typically used by organisations like the navy and mountain rescue teams [1].

The technology, which will benefit rural and hard-to-reach communities with patchy coverage or areas suffering outages, has only been rolled out widely in one other European country so far - Ukraine, where it offers extra coverage and resilience, including as a backup amidst wartime damage to its mobile networks. 

In the UK, over time it will bring an end to daily frustrations in remote areas like dropped calls, unsent messages and app update failures. And nature lovers need no longer worry about going without signal in the great outdoors.

Ofcom has decided to allow mobile companies and satellite operators to join forces and use airwaves known as mobile spectrum, subject to certain technical conditions.

O2 – partnering with Starlink – has announced that it will start to introduce satellite connectivity by early 2026, while Vodafone has signed a deal with AST to bring these services to its customers [2]. 

Ready to launch

Any mobile network operator that intends to provide direct-to-device services will need to request a change to its Ofcom licence. 

As this technology will utilise frequencies that are already used by the mobile sector, there are rules that companies will need to follow to avoid interference, which Ofcom has also finalised today. These include protections to avoid disruption to air traffic control stations and mobile networks in neighbouring countries.

Ofcom has also confirmed that no licence will be needed by ordinary smartphone users to get a signal from space. 

David Willis, Ofcom’s Group Director for Spectrum, said:

“With satellite technology, in future you could send selfies from Scafell Pike, livestream from Lake Windermere, or browse bargains from Ben Nevis.

"Mobile operators are already pressing ahead to the make UK the first nation in Western Europe to have widespread access to this technology, which will see remote and rural areas be better connected than ever before, unlocking opportunities for communities, businesses and economic growth.”

Notes to editors:

1. With some of the latest Apple handsets, users can connect their device to a satellite to text the emergency services, request roadside assistance and share their location. 
2. Information on O2’s plans is here and Vodafone’s is here.
3. How direct-to-device satellite technology works: