A U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) bureau recently approved the sale of approximately 65MHz of EchoStar spectrum to SpaceX and 50MHz to AT&T. These transactions ended up totalling more than $40 billion in deal value.
The FCC’s Wireless Telecommunications Bureau and Space Bureau issued the approvals for EchoStar to sell the spectrum assets to SpaceX and AT&T.
FCC chairman Brendan Carr framed the approvals as a cornerstone of the Trump administration’s broader effort to reclaim global leadership in next-generation connectivity.
Carr positioned the approvals as part of a two-track spectrum strategy combining secondary-market transactions with FCC auctions, with the agency targeting the release of approximately 300MHz of low- and mid-band spectrum by the end of 2027.
“As a result of President Trump’s work, Americans are now going to see faster Internet speeds, stronger competition, and innovative new offerings, including high-speed connections right to your smartphone from space, providing ubiquitous connectivity when these new systems are complete”, Carr stated.
SpaceX is the headline beneficiary, acquiring approximately 65MHz of nationwide spectrum, including AWS-3, AWS-4, and H-Block frequencies, marking the first time the company secured exclusive-use, contiguous spectrum for its Starlink direct-to-device service.
AT&T picked up around 50MHz spanning the 3.45GHz mid-band and 600MHz low-band, with the mobile operator wasting no time deploying the frequencies under a licence agreement with EchoStar.
The FCC attached stringent buildout conditions to both approvals, requiring AT&T to complete its greenfield 600MHz network on an accelerated timeline, significantly ahead of what the operator originally sought. AT&T receives no buildout extension on the 3.45GHz holdings given how far deployment has already progressed.
For SpaceX, the FCC is granting a series of waivers designed to accommodate the growing convergence of satellite and terrestrial broadband. The decisions allow Starlink to deploy its new spectrum across terrestrial, space-based, or hybrid architectures.
While EchoStar is continuing to offer cell services through a MVNO agreement with AT&T, the FCC is requiring it establish an escrow account of $2.4 billion which can be drawn upon for qualifying claims.
Source: Mobile World Live
Image Credit: AT&T & SpaceX
