Mergers, Mergers, Mergers: How Lynk and Omnispace Birthed Elveo Mobile

Over the past few months, there have been multiple Mergers and Acquisitions (M&A) in the space industry—Amazon-Globalstar, Iridium-RocketLab, SpaceX’s Spectrum Grab from EchoStar, and now Lynk-Omnispace (rebranded as Elveo Mobile).

Elveo Mobile is focused on next-generation Direct-to-Device (D2D) connections between satellites and standard smartphones, and Internet of Things (IoT) devices. The company will combine Lynk’s patented, low-cost, multi-spectrum satellite technology platform and architecture with Omnispace’s 60 Megahertz (MHz) of globally coordinated S-band spectrum to accelerate global deployment and D2D service delivery. Omnispace’s licensed Mobile Satellite Services (MSS) spectrum is compliant with The 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) standards for Non-Terrestrial Networks (NTNs), and its market access footprint reaches over 1 billion people across the Americas, Europe, Africa, and Asia.

In addition, SES will act as a major strategic shareholder to facilitate the deployment of D2D satellite services. SES will also provide access to its multi-orbit network and globally deployed ground infrastructure for Elveo Mobile. It will also benefit SES as it can access new Low Earth Orbit (LEO) capabilities for its high-growth segment areas.  

While it is easy to get caught up in the narrative that SpaceX’s Starlink and Amazon Leo are eventually going to swallow up the D2D landscape while smaller players get acquired, there is a formidable line-up of contenders—AST SpaceMobile, Globalstar, Iridium, Viasat-Space42’s Equatys, and the newly formed Elveo Mobile. Each player brings its competitive advantage to the table: Globalstar with its exclusive partnership with Apple and loyal iPhone installed base; AST SpaceMobile and its next-gen BlueBird satellites that feature massive phased-array antennas that offer broadband-like speeds to standard smartphones; and Iridium NTN Direct Service that use the Iridium satellite constellation providing true pole-to-pole coverage. In comparison, what does Elveo Mobile bring to the table?

• MSS Spectrum Advantage: The 60 MHz of globally harmonized S-band MSS spectrum obtained from Omnispace gives Elveo Mobile dedicated and owned spectrum, as compared to borrowed spectrum from Mobile Network Operators (MNOs) such as AST SpaceMobile and Starlink (via T-Mobile). It also gives it International Telecommunication Union (ITU) S-band priority rights and puts it on par with AST SpaceMobile in terms of volume of MSS spectrum.
• Immediate Global Footprint: With the merger, Elveo Mobile gains over 50 MNO agreements and signed commercial contracts across more than 60 countries. Its technology is also compatible with over 8 billion smartphones worldwide, providing mobile voice and messaging services to new devices.
• SES as a Strategic Partner: SES will play a critical role in Elveo Mobile’s D2D service capabilities and developments. Elveo Mobile’s LEO satellites will be integrated with SES global Geostationary Earth Orbit (GEO)-Medium Earth Orbit (MEO) multi-orbit, multi-spectrum architecture and ground infrastructure, broadening its reach to the government and enterprise sectors as well.

Despite these promising advantages, Elveo Mobile is still lagging behind in terms of manufacturing and launch capabilities. Lynk Global designs and builds its small satellites in-house and plans to scale production to deploy a constellation of 320 LEO satellites by mid-2027. However, there are only 9 active satellites in orbit to date (6 in LEO from Lynk and 2 LEO, 1 MEO from Omnispace). As for satellite launches, Lynk Global and Omnispace (Elveo) have historically relied on SpaceX Falcon 9 rockets via rideshare missions and do not have their own independent launch capability.

On that note, SpaceX has announced plans to phase out and retire the Falcon 9 rocket program to allocate engineering and Research and Development (R&D) resources to Starship. This indicates that SpaceX will eventually slow down or stop accepting commercial bookings and rideshare reservations in the next couple of years, which will affect Elveo’s deployment of satellite constellations.

Apart from device Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) and chipset vendors that play a major role in terms of integrating and scaling D2D devices, the telco operators and MNOs are the terrestrial service operators that connect with the satellite operators to provide D2D services to consumers. What should MNOs consider when choosing satellite partners and how can they ensure strategic alignment?

• Diversify D2D Options: With the competitive landscape in the D2D space, telcos should not rush into exclusive, single-provider partnerships and rely solely on Starlink or AST SpaceMobile. We are seeing some diversification with the Joint Venture (JV) established between the U.S. telcos—T-Mobile, AT&T, and Verizon—for a shared infrastructure model, despite T-Mobile having an exclusive collaboration with Starlink currently for its T-Satellite service. MNOs should adopt a multi-vendor strategy and look for a wholesale, open architecture platform for flexibility and to avoid vendor lock-in.
• Leverage Elveo as Negotiation Counterweight: MNOs can also use Elveo (and other emerging players) to renegotiate terms, exclusivity clauses, and revenue-sharing splits for a better deal. As more D2D players emerge through M&As, JVs, or new services from strong incumbents, there is more competition in the market, allowing MNOs to choose the operators that align with their strategy and vision best.  
• Expand Beyond SOS and Satellite Messaging: Many satellite service operators offer SOS, one-way messaging, and two-way messaging today, which are becoming standard and basic features. The real competitive advantage lies in the advanced features such as satellite voice calls and data for consumer usage, and expansion into enterprise industry verticals for commercial scalability. The true Return on Investment (ROI) is when business operations rely on the satellite service to operate seamlessly and that is critical in everyday workflows. Some examples of vertical-specific packages that MNOs can bundle into their plans include automotive telematics, remote asset tracking, energy infrastructure monitoring, and agricultural IoT. Once a feature becomes a “must have” instead of a “nice to have,” the D2D service gains its competitive edge.
• Future-Proof with Forward-Looking Partners that Innovate with On-Orbit Compute and Advanced Capabilities: As mentioned earlier, the common D2D services offered today include SOS and basic Short Message Service (SMS). The next wave of competition relies on edge processing and dynamic capacity allocation in space. MNOs should look beyond simply “bent-pipe” satellite connectivity architecture and partner with operators that feature on-board processing capabilities. Hence, when consumer and enterprise demand shift toward data-heavy applications, the network will still be able to scale dynamically with more users without degrading terrestrial bandwidth.