Telefónica, Orange, Vodafone y Telekom negocian crear una constelación satelital

Telefónica, Orange, Vodafone y Deutsche Telekom, the four leading telecommunications operators in Europe, are reportedly in preliminary discussions to form a consortium that would bid for EU satellite spectrum. This spectrum, set to become available in 2027, is intended for direct-to-device (D2D) services for mobile phones, according to Bloomberg.

The consortium would submit a joint proposal to obtain a portion of the radio frequency spectrum in the 2 gigahertz (GHz) band, which the EU has proposed reserving for local operators. This move aims to bolster the continent's satellite capabilities.

The European Union announced plans in May to allocate the majority of this spectrum for European mobile services while reducing the quota for U.S. operators, in an effort to promote national companies and reduce dependence on major tech firms. The EU's proposal, presented in May and yet to be definitively approved, restructures access to the 2 GHz spectrum, which is currently held by American companies.

When these concessions expire in May 2027, the EU plans to divide three blocks of this spectrum. One-third will be allocated primarily to the IRIS2 project, a European public-private satellite constellation with nearly 300 satellites for government and defense communications. The consortium SpaceRISE, comprising Eutelsat, Hispasat, and SES Astra, was awarded in late 2024 the responsibility to design, build, and operate the satellites for IRIS2.

The IRIS2 project also includes a third of the spectrum open to third-party European countries, reflecting concerns about North American satellite constellations like SpaceX's Starlink. The remaining one-third is reserved for European private entities, which would be the target of the potential consortium of European telecom operators.

However, even if the European telecom consortium becomes a reality, it would be impossible for them to use their own satellite constellation immediately, as there are only eight months left before they can take control of the spectrum following the expiration of current concessions.