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Vodafone and AST SpaceMobile select Germany for Satellite Operations Centre to further strengthen Europe's digital sovereignty.
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Move follows establishment of Vodafone and AST SpaceMobile Luxembourg-headquartered satellite joint venture, SatCo.
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Planned EU constellation to be equipped with a "command switch" to provide European oversight and security.
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AST SpaceMobile filed with the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) through Germany for registration of a new mid-band satellite constellation.
AST SpaceMobile Inc. ("AST SpaceMobile") (NASDAQ:ASTS), the company building the first and only space-based cellular broadband network accessible directly by everyday smartphones, designed for both commercial and government application, and Vodafone Group Plc (Vodafone) (LSE: VOD), a leading European and African telecommunications company, announce today that they have selected Germany as the location for their main Satellite Operations Centre. The centre will allocate and map satellite connectivity used by SatCo to serve mobile network operators (MNOs) across Europe to ensure ubiquitous mobile broadband in underserved areas and support emergency services and disaster relief agencies. It will be located near either Munich or Hannover, depending on final negotiations with all relevant parties.
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Vodafone and AST SpaceMobile announce new satellite constellation
SatCo aims to provide a scalable European satellite mobile broadband service for use by MNOs to benefit all European citizens, businesses and public sector organisations. MNOs in 21 European Union (EU) member states and other European countries have expressed interest in adopting the service, with commercial launch planned to commence from 2026.
The planned EU constellation will include a comprehensive ‘command switch' feature to support European oversight and security. This capability supports updating all telemetry, tracking, and control (TTC) encryption keys for both S-Band (used to connect smartphones from space) and Q/V-Band (used for links between satellites and earth stations). It also allows for the modification of service encryption keys for communications across the continent, as well as manages the activation, deactivation, and direction of satellite beams in Europe.
In addition to commercial mobile broadband, the constellation will support public protection and disaster relief efforts (PPDR). It does this by providing reliable, broadband-speed connectivity from space directly to the everyday smartphones and other cellular devices of emergency responders, even in the most dangerous and challenging environments.
Margherita Della Valle, CEO of Vodafone, said: "SatCo delivers a sovereign satellite solution to the whole of Europe. It will give European operators access to secure and resilient satellite communications, complementing existing terrestrial telecommunications networks. By establishing a satellite constellation in the EU and our principal command centre in Germany, we are ensuring the next frontier of communications infrastructure is firmly embedded in Europe."
The planned satellite constellation can also contribute to the development of a pan-European mobile broadband system, enhancing the communication and coordination of emergency services during crises and disasters, in line with the EU Critical Communication System (EUCCS) vision. In particular, the satellites will support frequency bands that are suitable for PPDR radio communications, subject to national decisions and deployment choices.
While many functions are automated, specialist engineers at the Operations Centre will monitor and respond to extraterrestrial events such as solar flares, as well as manage issues that arise on Earth. It will also house one of a network of SatCo ground-based gateway stations across Europe. These gateways provide secure backhaul links between the satellite constellation and terrestrial 4G/5G networks, enabling users to switch automatically between space-based and land-based coverage for uninterrupted, resilient connectivity.
AST SpaceMobile has submitted through Germany the appropriate filings with the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), a specialised agency of the United Nations. This will help manage and mitigate any signal interference and ensure the smooth integration with existing mobile telecoms networks.
Germany's strategically central location provides SatCo with the ideal foundation to complement terrestrial networks, supporting the need to keep users across Europe remain securely connected anytime, anywhere. In addition to providing service to all EU MNOs using their national spectrum bands, SatCo is a candidate for access to the EU 2GHz Mobile Satellite Services (MSS) spectrum. If secured, this would enable existing MNOs to distribute a fully pan-European, sovereign, space-based broadband service directly to their customers. The aforementioned PPDR frequency bands (698–703/753–758 MHz and 733–736/788–791 MHz) would be used to support this capability.
About AST SpaceMobile and Vodafone
Vodafone and AST SpaceMobile's joint efforts have already led to a series of groundbreaking achievements in direct-to-device connectivity with everyday smartphones, including:
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The world's first space-based video call to an unmodified phone in Europe
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The world's first space-based 4G and 5G calls using unmodified phones
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Download speeds of over 20 Mbps to unmodified phones on a 5 MHz channel
AST SpaceMobile has agreements with over 50 mobile network operators with nearly 3 billion subscribers globally. Its technology, backed by over 3,700 patent and patent-pending claims, is designed to support both government and commercial customers. The company is based in Midland, Texas with 95% vertically integrated manufacturing and nearly 500,000 square feet of state-of-the-art facilities. The next-generation Block 2 BlueBirds featuring up to 2,400 square foot communications arrays, are designed to deliver up to 10 times the bandwidth capacity of the BlueBird satellites in orbit today, enabling peak data transmission speeds up to 120 Mbps, supporting voice, full data, and video applications.
About Vodafone
Vodafone is a leading European and African telecoms company.
We serve over 355 million mobile and broadband customers, operating networks in 15 countries with investments in a further five and partners in over 40 more. Our undersea cables transport around a sixth of the world's internet traffic, and we are developing a new direct-to-mobile satellite communications service to connect areas without coverage. Vodafone runs one of the world's largest IoT platforms, with 215 million IoT connections globally, and we provide financial services to around 92 million customers across seven African countries – managing more transactions than any other provider.
From the seabed to the stars, Vodafone's purpose is to keep everyone connected.
For more information, please visit www.vodafone.com follow us on X at @VodafoneGroup or connect with us on LinkedIn at www.linkedin.com/company/vodafone.
About AST SpaceMobile
AST SpaceMobile is building the first and only global cellular broadband network in space to operate directly with standard, unmodified mobile devices based on our extensive IP and patent portfolio, and designed for both commercial and government applications. Our engineers and space scientists are on a mission to eliminate the connectivity gaps faced by today's five billion mobile subscribers and finally bring broadband to the billions who remain unconnected. For more information, follow AST SpaceMobile on YouTube, X (Formerly Twitter), LinkedIn and Facebook. Watch this video for an overview of the SpaceMobile mission.
Forward Looking Statements
This communication contains "forward-looking statements" that are not historical facts, and involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results of AST SpaceMobile to differ materially from those expected and projected. These forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology, including the words "believes," "estimates," "anticipates," "expects," "intends," "plans," "may," "will," "would," "potential," "projects," "predicts," "continue," or "should," or, in each case, their negative or other variations or comparable terminology.
These forward-looking statements involve significant risks and uncertainties that could cause the actual results to differ materially from the expected results. Most of these factors are outside AST SpaceMobile's control and are difficult to predict.
Factors that could cause such differences include, but are not limited to: (i) expectations regarding AST SpaceMobile's strategies and future financial performance, including AST's future business plans or objectives, expected functionality of the SpaceMobile Service, anticipated timing of the launch of the Block 2 BlueBird satellites, anticipated demand and acceptance of mobile satellite services, prospective performance and commercial opportunities and competitors, the timing of obtaining regulatory approvals, ability to finance its research and development activities, commercial partnership acquisition and retention, products and services, pricing, marketing plans, operating expenses, market trends, revenues, liquidity, cash flows and uses of cash, capital expenditures, and AST SpaceMobile's ability to invest in growth initiatives; (ii) the negotiation of definitive agreements with mobile network operators relating to the SpaceMobile Service that would supersede preliminary agreements and memoranda of understanding and the ability to enter into commercial agreements with other parties or government entities; (iii) the ability of AST SpaceMobile to grow and manage growth profitably and retain its key employees and AST SpaceMobile's responses to actions of its competitors and its ability to effectively compete; (iv) changes in applicable laws or regulations; (v) the possibility that AST SpaceMobile may be adversely affected by other economic, business, and/or competitive factors; (vi) the outcome of any legal proceedings that may be instituted against AST SpaceMobile; and (vii) other risks and uncertainties indicated in the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), including those in the Risk Factors section of AST SpaceMobile's Form 10-K filed with the SEC on March 3, 2025.
AST SpaceMobile cautions that the foregoing list of factors is not exclusive. AST SpaceMobile cautions readers not to place undue reliance upon any forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date made. For information identifying important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those anticipated in the forward-looking statements, please refer to the Risk Factors in AST SpaceMobile's Form 10-K filed with the SEC on March 3, 2025. AST SpaceMobile's securities filings can be accessed on the EDGAR section of the SEC's website at www.sec.gov. Except as expressly required by applicable securities law, AST SpaceMobile disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.
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AST SpaceMobile
Investor Contact:
Scott Wisniewski
investors@ast-science.com
Media Contacts:
Allison
Eva Murphy Ryan
917-547-7289
AstSpaceMobile@allisonpr.com
Vodafone
Media Relations:
Vodafone.com/media/contact
GroupMedia@vodafone.com
Investor Relations:
investors.vodafone.com
ir@vodafone.co.uk
Registered Office:
Vodafone House, The Connection, Newbury,
Berkshire RG14 2FN, England. Registered in
England No. 1833679
