SpaceX has agreed to acquire 100 percent of Grain Management's nationwide 800MHz spectrum portfolio, a deal that would give Starlink Mobile up to 14MHz of paired low-band spectrum across the United States. The acquisition is still pending FCC approval.
The move is the clearest signal yet that SpaceX intends to compete directly with AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile. Elon Musk called the spectrum "the last critical piece of the spectrum puzzle needed" for SpaceX to provide complete phone coverage in America.
Why 800MHz low-band spectrum matters for Starlink Mobile
Low-band spectrum travels farther and penetrates walls better than higher frequencies, which is exactly what Starlink Mobile needed to serve customers indoors. SpaceX already holds 2GHz mid-band spectrum for high-capacity coverage and has FCC approval to deploy 15,000 next-generation satellites optimized for that band.
According to SpaceX, those Gen2 satellites will deliver more than 100 times the bandwidth of the current generation. The company plans to pair its satellite-to-mobile constellation with ground-based femtocells and an advanced terrestrial deployment to offer 5G coverage.
Most existing smartphones already support the 800MHz band, so SpaceX says it can reach millions of potential customers without requiring them to buy new devices.
- Up to 14MHz of paired spectrum in the 800MHz band
- Acquired from Grain Management, pending FCC approval
- Most existing phones already support the band
