Australia’s Telstra currently works with Space X’s Starlink to provide low-Earth orbit (LEO) satellite home and small business Internet services.  Today, the company announced it will be adding direct-to-device (D2D) text messaging services for customers in Australia.  We wrote about that in this IEEE Techblog post.  Telstra’s new D2D service is currently in the testing phase and not yet available commercially. Telstra forecasts it will be available from most outdoor areas on mainland Australia and Tasmania where there is a direct line of sight to the sky.

Telstra already has the largest and most reliable mobile network in Australia covering 99.7% of the Australian population over an area of 3 million square kilometres, which is more than 1 million square kilometres greater than our nearest competitor. But Australia’s landmass is vast and there will always be large areas where mobile and fixed networks do not reach, and this is where satellite technology will play a complementary role to our existing networks.  As satellite technology continues to evolve to support voice, data and IoT Telsa plans to explore opportunities for the commercial launch of those new services.

Telstra previously teamed up with satellite provider Eutelsat OneWeb to deliver OneWeb low-Earth orbit (LEO) mobile backhaul to customers in Australia. The telco said the D2D text messaging service with Starlink will provide improved coverage to customers in regional and remote areas. Telstra’s mobile network covers 99.7% of the Australian population over an area of 3 million square kilometers. The company said it has invested $11.8 billion into its mobile network in Australia over the past seven years.  As satellite technology advances, Telstra plans to look into voice, data and IoT services.

T-Mobile, AT&T and Verizon are all working on satellite-based text messaging services. Many D2D providers such as Starlink have promised text messaging services initially with plans to add more bandwidth-heavy applications, including voice and video, at a later date.  “The first Starlink satellite direct to cell phone constellation is now complete,” SpaceX’s Elon Musk wrote on social media in December 2024. That’s good news for T-Mobile, which plans to launch a D2D service with Starlink in the near future.  Verizon and AT&T and working with satellite provider AST SpaceMobile to develop their own D2D services.

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What is Satellite-to-Mobile technology?

Satellite-to-Mobile is one of the most exciting areas in the whole telco space and creates a future where outdoor connectivity for basic services, starting with text messages and, eventually, voice and low-rates of data, may be possible from some of Australia’s most remote locations. You may also hear it referred to as Direct to Handset or DTH technology.

What makes this technology so interesting is that for many people, they won’t need to buy a specific compatible phone to send an SMS over Satellite-to-Mobile, as it will take advantage of technology already inside modern smartphones.

Satellite-to-Mobile will complement our existing land-based mobile network offering basic  connectivity where people have never had it before.* This technology will continue to mature and will initially support sending and receiving text messages, and in the longer term, voice and low speed data to smartphones across Australia when outdoors with a clear line of site to the sky. Just as mobile networks didn’t replace fibre networks, it’s important to realise the considerable difference between the carrying capacity of satellite versus mobile technology.

Who will benefit most from Satellite-to-Mobile technology?

Satellite-to-Mobile is most relevant to people in regional and remote areas of the country that are outside their carrier’s mobile coverage footprint.

Currently, Satellite-to-Mobile technology allows users to send a message only.

This is currently really a “just-in-case” connectivity layer that allows a person to make contact for help or let someone know they are ok when they are outside their own carrier’s mobile coverage footprint.

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References:

https://www.telstra.com.au/internet/starlink

https://www.telstra.com.au/exchange/telstra-to-bring-spacex-s-starlink-satellite-to-mobile-technolog

https://www.lightreading.com/satellite/telstra-taps-starlink-for-d2d-satellite-messaging-service

https://www.lightreading.com/satellite/amazon-d2d-offerings-are-in-development-

Telstra partners with Starlink for home phone service and LEO satellite broadband services

AT&T deal with AST SpaceMobile to provide wireless service from space

AST SpaceMobile: “5G” Connectivity from Space to Everyday Smartphones

AST SpaceMobile achieves 4G LTE download speeds >10 Mbps during test in Hawaii

AST SpaceMobile completes 1st ever LEO satellite voice call using AT&T spectrum and unmodified Samsung and Apple smartphones

AST SpaceMobile Deploys Largest-Ever LEO Satellite Communications Array