Exclusive-Starlink and Amazon may be able to buy into EU mobile satellite spectrum plan

By Foo Yun Chee

BRUSSELS, May 26 (Reuters) – Elon Musk’s Starlink and Amazon’s low-earth-orbit satellite business may be able to acquire some European mobile satellite spectrum next year, two people with direct knowledge of the matter said on Tuesday.

But they said two-thirds of the satellite spectrum that allows mobile devices and vehicles to communicate seamlessly even in remote locations, would be reserved for European companies.

U.S. companies Viasat and EchoStar hold licences that are due to expire in May 2027 and the European Commission has been considering how to allocate future spectrum at the same time as the bloc pushes to reduce reliance on U.S. tech.

The European Union’s IRIS2 multi-orbit array of 290 satellites, a response to Starlink, will be among the European companies to receive some spectrum, the sources said.

British and Norwegian companies can also bid for a licence, the people said.

Details of the proposal, set to be announced on Wednesday, could still change at a meeting of commissioners on the day, one of the sources said.

The person said one commissioner’s insistence that all spectrum should be reserved entirely for European businesses had put them at odds with EU tech chief Henna Virkkunen who does not want to exclude any company. The person said Virkkunen was likely to win the argument.

Asked for comment on Tuesday, Commission spokesman Thomas Regnier said EU-wide satellite connectivity was “synonymous with resilience, security, and capability” given the current geopolitical context.

“Satellite connectivity is a key piece of our technological sovereignty, our security, and our defence, as also highlighted by IRIS2,” he said.

(Reporting by Foo Yun Chee; editing by Barbara LewisEditing by David Goodman and Barbara Lewis)