SpaceX is an American spacecraft producer and telecommunication company owned by Elon Musk. This company also provides services to launch rockets and satellites. On the other hand, Globalstar is also a satellite communication company that is backed by Apple. Globalstar’s satellite network is used by Apple to provide network connectivity for iPhone users in case of emergency.
According to an SEC filing, Apple satellite partner Globalstar has disclosed plans to pay SpaceX $64 million for their partnership. SpaceX will launch its satellites to provide Apple’s emergency SOS feature on iPhones. This collaboration is significant for Apple’s Emergency SOS via Satellite feature, introduced alongside the iPhone 14 models. This feature will be also present in the upcoming iPhone 15 series, but before that Apple is working on its satellite connectivity.
For this purpose they choose SpaceX, as it is crucial in deploying and maintaining the satellites necessary for this emergency service.The payments for this agreement are scheduled from 2023 to 2025, coinciding with SpaceX’s satellite launch schedule. Looking to the already existing satellites of Globalstar, SpaceX will also launch the new 13 satellites to low earth orbit to replenish the existing pattern.
These satellites were bought by Globalstar last year in February by an agreement with MDA. The Rocket Lab will act as a subcontractor by providing spacecraft chassis.
These satellites are worth $327 million. Apple is compensating Globalstar for 95% of the expenses related to satellites. The company also agreed on funding $252 million for compensating the cost related to replenishing the satellite constellation and for satellite maintenance. Apple will also utilize 85% of Globalstar’s network to provide emergency satellite connectivity for iPhones that are not connected to cellular networks.
Initially, Apple is offering this feature free of charge for about two years, but the cost involved in launching and maintaining satellites with SpaceX suggests that Apple may eventually introduce fees for users utilizing the SOS option. Emergency SOS feature is right now available in these few countries: USA, Canada, France, Germany, Ireland, UK, Austria, Belgium, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Australia, New Zealand, and Portugal. Soon this service will be available in six more countries.
This new contract shows that SpaceX has got near-monopoly on orbital launches. Space X is also working on developing its sat-to-cell (satellite-to-cellular) through its Starlink satellite constellation. It will overcome coverage limitations such as no land usage for tower placement. This is making SpaceX a competitor to Globalstar. This competition was highlighted last year when SpaceX filed a request to provide more spectrums for its Starlink. It includes an exclusively used band of 1.6/2.4 GHz by Globalstar.
