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European Telecoms Explore Joint Bid for Mobile Satellite Spectrum

Globalbankingandfinance • October 19, 2026

FRANKFURT, Oct 19 (Reuters) - Deutsche Telekom, Orange, Telefonica and Vodafone have agreed to explore a joint bid for the future allocation of spectrum for mobile satellite services in Europe, the network operators said on Monday.

Objectives of the Collaboration

Universal Coverage and Network Resilience

• The aim is to meet customer demand for universal coverage in underserved areas, strengthen the resilience of public networks and protect critical communications.

Infrastructure and Coordination Plans

• The four companies plan to establish key ground infrastructure as well as important coordination and control functions in Europe, they said.

Investment and Partnership Details

Satellite Constellation Strategy

• They will not invest directly in a satellite constellation, which will be provided by a satellite partner still to be selected.

Existing Satellite Partnerships

• The letter of intent to explore a potential joint bid for MSS spectrum does not replace existing satellite partnerships.

(Reporting by Ersen Hakan, writing by Linda Pasquini, editing by Thomas Seythal)

The full story

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European Telcos Plan Joint Satellite Spectrum Bid Against Starlink On October 19, 2026, Deutsche Telekom, Orange, Telefónica, and Vodafone signed a letter of intent to explore a joint bid for mobile satellite services (MSS) spectrum in Europe. This initiative aims to create a European alternative to SpaceX's Starlink, focusing on providing direct-to-device services. The carriers plan to establish ground infrastructure and monitoring systems but will not invest in their own satellite constellation, relying instead on a yet-to-be-named partner. The collaboration is intended to enhance coverage in underserved areas, strengthen public network resilience, and support critical communications. The European Commission's goal of boosting digital sovereignty and security in connectivity infrastructure is also a driving factor behind this initiative. The operators are concerned about becoming dependent on external satellite services and aim to secure their own spectrum rights to negotiate better terms in the future. 7 sources 29

Extracted Entities

Companies (4)

Deutsche Telekom Orange Telefonica Vodafone