AST SpaceMobile and Vodafone Team Up for European Satellite Broadband

AST SpaceMobile, a pioneering company in space-based cellular broadband, has joined forces with Vodafone, a leading European telecommunications provider, to launch a jointly-owned European satellite service business. The new venture, SatCo, aims to provide 100% geographic coverage in every part of Europe, offering secure space-based cellular broadband connectivity via mobile network operators (MNOs).

The partnership between AST SpaceMobile and Vodafone addresses the digital sovereignty concerns of European consumers and businesses by ensuring that the core network capability remains with the MNOs. AST SpaceMobile's satellites operate as remote radio heads, relaying signals between the MNOs' core networks and users' devices. Additionally, SatCo will provide fully sovereign backhaul capabilities under Vodafone co-ownership, with European headquarters and management. This ensures that data remains within the European ecosystem, addressing digital sovereignty concerns.

AST SpaceMobile's innovative satellite technology enables mobile broadband connectivity directly to unmodified smartphones. The company's BlueBird satellites feature large communications arrays, up to 2,400 square feet, delivering high bandwidth capacity and peak data transmission speeds up to 120 Mbps. This innovation supports voice, full data, and video applications, closing coverage gaps and meeting Europe's ambitious targets for ubiquitous digital connectivity.

The strategic initiative of opening a research hub in Málaga, Spain, contributes significantly to AST SpaceMobile's European expansion and market penetration. The hub, supported by an initial grant from the Spanish Space Agency, is a collaboration between Vodafone, AST SpaceMobile, and the University of Málaga (UMA). This partnership fosters a new European ecosystem of combined satellite and earth connectivity solutions, enabling AST SpaceMobile to work with established players and leverage their expertise.

The hub will focus on the design, testing, and validation of new open source hardware, software, and processing chips that can work interchangeably in both space and terrestrial networks. This will allow AST SpaceMobile to develop and test new technologies and services before commercial launch, ensuring their reliability and effectiveness. By enabling other operators and vendors to test services through the hub, AST SpaceMobile encourages collaboration across the industry, driving innovation and delivering universal connectivity faster and more efficiently.

In conclusion, the partnership between AST SpaceMobile and Vodafone addresses digital sovereignty concerns, leverages innovative satellite technology, and fosters European expansion through strategic initiatives. This collaboration paves the way for secure, seamless, and ubiquitous mobile broadband connectivity across Europe.