Amazon satellite cellphone network planned for 2028 in FCC filing
Amazon asked the FCC to approve 5,105 direct-to-device satellites that could support phone service, messaging, data and emergencies.
By Maya Lindqvist · Senior Technology Correspondent
3 min read
Amazon satellite cellphone network plans moved to the Federal Communications Commission on Saturday, when the company filed an application for a new low Earth orbit constellation. Amazon says the system would provide direct-to-device service for voice, messaging, data and emergency communications, a step that could extend mobile coverage beyond traditional cell towers.
If regulators approve the request, Amazon says it would begin deploying 5,105 satellites in 2028. The company plans to work with mobile network operators to offer the service, an approach that resembles Starlink’s partnership with T-Mobile for satellite-backed phone service.
What is Amazon's satellite cellphone network?
Amazon describes the project as a direct-to-device satellite service, meaning phones could connect to satellites for certain communications without relying only on ground-based cellular networks. The planned constellation would use spectrum from Globalstar, according to Amazon, and would sit alongside the company’s broader Amazon Leo satellite internet effort.
The company says the new satellites would handle signal processing in orbit before sending communications onward, a design Amazon says is intended to improve performance. Amazon has said the service could be used for consumer satellite connectivity as well as emergency messaging and disaster response.
How Globalstar and Apple fit in
Amazon said earlier this year that it is acquiring Globalstar’s satellite network and taking over Globalstar’s agreement to provide direct-to-device satellite services for Apple devices. In connection with the new filing, Amazon says the expanded network would use Globalstar’s spectrum.
Amazon also says it plans to collaborate with Apple on future satellite services using the larger network. Apple’s current role in the planned expansion was not described beyond that collaboration statement.
Amazon’s announcement frames the direct-to-device service as a complement to the broadband services it plans to offer through Amazon Leo. That program, formerly known as Project Kuiper, is Amazon’s low Earth orbit satellite internet platform.
How the new constellation compares with Amazon Leo
The planned direct-to-device system would be larger than Amazon’s first Leo constellation. Amazon’s initial Leo network is planned at roughly 3,200 satellites, and the company said that more than 375 of those had launched as of July 2.
The new 5,105-satellite filing would nearly double the size of that first planned network. Amazon has not said in the material described whether service would be available to consumers immediately after deployment begins in 2028.
Advanced Television reported that the FCC application also asks to use spectrum assigned to Iridium’s satellite network outside the United States. That detail comes as Rocket Lab is in the process of acquiring Iridium and has outlined plans to expand, according to the report.
The proposal still depends on FCC approval. Until then, Amazon’s timetable remains a plan tied to its regulatory request, its Globalstar acquisition and its work with mobile operators.
This story draws on original reporting from The Verge.