- Consumer groups OTI and Public Knowledge back SpaceX’s push to reserve upper C-band spectrum for direct-to-device (D2D) satellite services
- SpaceX says its first-gen D2D service with T-Mobile already reaches more than 6 million users a month
- Rather than bidding at auction, SpaceX wants FCC rules that open parts of the upper C-band for D2D satellite and supplemental coverage from space
SpaceX is getting a little help from a rather unusual source: consumer interest groups.
Elon Musk’s SpaceX wants the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to reserve a portion of spectrum in the upper C-band for next-generation satellite use, including direct-to-device (D2D) services.
The Open Technology Institute at New America (OTI) and Public Knowledge (PK) – two well-established consumer advocacy groups – agree, noting in comments to the FCC that D2D connectivity has emerged as a “major opportunity” over the past year and companies like SpaceX should get a shot at more spectrum.
But wait a minute. Isn’t that a little weird, given that SpaceX is a really big company run by the world’s richest guy? Not really, according to Michael Calabrese, director of the Wireless Future program at OTI.
“We're just hoping to gin up more competition with the three big mobile carriers,” he told Fierce.
Upper C-band auction
This unlikely alignment comes as the FCC considers how it will auction the upper C-band (3.98-4.2 GHz) spectrum and it’s getting all kinds of advice on how to do it – from the aviation community to wireless carriers, broadcasters and beyond.
The One Big Beautiful Bill Act mandates at least 100 megahertz of upper C-band spectrum be auctioned by July 2027; the upper C-band spans a total of 220 megahertz. The FCC has said it could auction off as much as 180 megahertz, with the remainder of the band allocated for repacked fixed satellite service (FSS) operations, which are the current incumbents of the band.
It’s unknown how much the FCC ultimately will decide to auction – CTIA is pressing for a full 180 megahertz for full-power, licensed use, which is what the Big 3 wireless carriers favor. SES Americom, which currently uses the upper C-band for satellite services and will need to clear a sizable portion of the spectrum, says the minimum amount should not exceed 160 megahertz.
OTI and PK say if more than 100 megahertz gets auctioned, the FCC should create an additional sub-band that resembles the Citizens Broadband Radio Service (CBRS) band so that more smaller players can get involved in the auction.
SpaceX: D2D needs more spectrum
The policy debate is unfolding just as SpaceX is rapidly expanding its satellite-to-phone footprint.
SpaceX is acquiring unpaired AWS-3 licenses from EchoStar for about $2.6 billion, as well as 2 GHz/AWS-4 and H block spectrum from EchoStar for about $17 billion. But SpaceX wants more, citing its “rapidly expanding” first-generation service launched with T-Mobile last July – a service that has expanded to 22 countries and is now seeing more than 6 million customers accessing it each month.
The aerospace company notes that other providers are rushing to launch their own D2D services, including AST SpaceMobile and Lynk Global/Omnispace. Globalstar, which provides Apple’s satellite connectivity, is expanding its ground network in preparation for the launch of its third-generation C-3 D2D system.
Rumors have swirled that SpaceX might be angling to buy Globalstar and take over as the satellite provider to Apple. Globalstar CEO Paul Jacobs declined to comment on the reports on the company’s Q3 earnings call.
“Next-generation satellite systems could fully use this spectrum for downlink without causing interference to radio altimeters,” SpaceX told the FCC in a January 20 filing on the upper C-Band issue.
Auction avoidance
But it’s worth noting that SpaceX isn’t proposing to buy spectrum at auction. Fierce asked Tim Farrar, principal of TMF Associations, for his take on SpaceX’s filing.
“Nothing in here suggests that SpaceX wants to participate in an auction and buy spectrum,” he said.
Instead, they want rules that allow them to use the guard band (i.e. the part that wouldn’t be auctioned) for satellite service and then authorize Supplemental Coverage from Space (SCS) in the C-band. In addition, they want the FCC to allow secondary satellite use of C-band on a non-interference basis where terrestrial service is not deployed, which is likely to attract considerable opposition from the wireless carriers that want to control their own licensed spectrum, he said.
According to SpaceX, the FCC has several ways to promote deployment of next-generation satellite services in the upper C-band, one of which is to make a portion of the band adjacent to the 4.2 GHz available for next-gen satellite use.
“The commission’s plans for C-band should encompass a holistic strategy for deployment and integration of terrestrial and non-terrestrial networks – the commission cannot afford to view satellite services as an afterthought in C-band, or in any spectrum band,” SpaceX told the FCC.
Looking at 6G
Beyond the immediate spectrum fight, advocates say the dispute highlights a deeper shift in how wireless, Wi-Fi and satellite networks should work together.
Calabrese said most of the geography of the U.S. doesn’t have mobile coverage at all, or it’s very bad. In a recently published report on 6G, he argues that mobile, Wi-Fi and satellite networks are all pretty much separate, but if we want to achieve good quality broadband coverage everywhere, then the U.S. should adopt a “convergence of connectivity” model that allows users to access and transition among the best available technologies anywhere and everywhere.
“This contrasts with the siloed vision of mobile 6G, which is likely to carry less and less mobile data traffic in the years ahead as Wi-Fi handles all indoor data and satellites deliver 4G/5G service directly to mobile devices in any and every location,” he said.
It remains to be seen what the FCC does and for that matter, how much consumers are willing to pay for satellite connectivity in their phones. Either way, it will be interesting to see how the FCC balances the interests of wireless carriers, satellite players like SpaceX and the rest of the stakeholders in the upper C-band.