PIRO4D / Pixabay
British group Vodafone and Ast Spacemobile, which is headquartered in Texas (USA), are trying to compete with Elon Musk’s Starlink to complement European mobile networks with satellite services.
This joint project, called SatCoaims to reach “100% geographical coverage throughout Europe”to allow consumers and companies to access the “Safe Mobile Broadband based on space through its mobile phone operator”, as Vodafone says in the newspaper quoted, specializing in technology.
The plan is to sell satellite technology to other mobile phone operators throughout the European continent, to reach areas that currently have no mobile coverage.
Satco will enable mobile phone users to switch between their 4G or satellite coverage on the same device.
This is a differential factor Important in Musk that needs special devices, namely hardware equipment.
“Our new satellite company could offer this pioneer technology to other European mobile operators through a service ready to use Which combines Vodafone’s network and engineering with Ast Spacemobile’s ‘antennas in the sky’, ”explains Vodafone CEO Margherita Della Valle, in statements to the British newspaper.
The project is part of creating “a network of land stations” to “provide Backhaul services [sistema que conecta a rede central com as sub-redes ou as redes locais]”Also announces Vodafone.
First Spatial Videochmada in the world with a smartphone
Last January, Vodafone and ASTS performed the world in an area without mobile coverage to certify the added value of its joint project. The call was made with smartphones that already exist for sale in the market.
It was a determining step for this partnership that intends make competition to Starlink.
But, for now, ASTS has “Only five satellites in orbit“, As the Heise Online, noting that, compared, Starlink has“ a total of 7,052 satellites functional, ”“ although only some of them are used to supply smartphones ”.
The Musk company has already celebrated contracts with multiple mobile network operators worldwide to provide mobile services from space. But there is no No European network operator In these contracts, he assures Heise online.
Vodafone has a participation in ASTS, such as Google and other companies.
