SpaceX seeks Grain’s 800 MHz spectrum for Starlink Mobile network

SpaceX has agreed to buy Grain Management’s nationwide 800 MHz licenses in a proposed SpaceX Grain spectrum deal that would supply low-band airwaves for its planned Starlink Mobile network. The price was not disclosed, and the transfer still needs Federal Communications Commission approval; it follows SpaceX’s FCC-approved $17 billion purchase of 65 MHz of nationwide mid-band spectrum from EchoStar, according to Ars Technica.

The agreement adds another building block to SpaceX’s effort to offer a hybrid mobile service using satellites and terrestrial equipment. SpaceX has said it wants Starlink Mobile to become a major U.S. carrier, but the transaction and its spectrum holdings do not establish that it will match or surpass AT&T, T-Mobile or Verizon on coverage, capacity, pricing, reliability or customer adoption.

What does the SpaceX-Grain spectrum deal add to Starlink Mobile?

The licenses cover 817-824 MHz paired with 862-869 MHz, a band the FCC describes as paired, broadband-ready low-band spectrum. Holdings range from 4.85 MHz to 14 MHz by county and cover about 100% of the U.S. population, Ars Technica reported. The FCC previously said the licenses could support terrestrial service, satellite-to-device operations or both.

The frequencies originated with T-Mobile. In a July 1 FCC order, the agency approved T-Mobile’s transfer of the 800 MHz licenses to Grain as part of a swap involving Grain’s 600 MHz holdings. The Justice Department had required T-Mobile to divest the licenses as a condition of its acquisition of Sprint. The FCC said the 800 MHz spectrum had been underused and imposed buildout conditions on Grain meant to prevent warehousing.

SpaceX told the FCC that it would deploy radios feeding sectorized antennas on towers, rooftops and other structures, working alongside its satellite-to-mobile constellation. In that filing, SpaceX said the 800 MHz band’s propagation characteristics would give it long-range coverage, performance amid terrain and clutter, and stronger building penetration. Those are the company’s technical assertions, not independently measured results from a deployed Starlink Mobile network.

How would the network fit together?

SpaceX has positioned the low-band licenses as a coverage layer, while the 2 GHz mid-band spectrum it is acquiring from EchoStar would supply capacity. Its plan is therefore not a satellite-only cellular network. The company is combining spectrum, terrestrial sites and satellites, with final regulatory approval and network construction still ahead.

The FCC also approved SpaceX to deploy up to 15,000 next-generation direct-to-device satellites, according to Ars Technica. SpaceX says the new satellites will deliver more than 100 times the bandwidth of its current generation. It has launched 650 current direct-to-device satellites and told Canadian regulators that next-generation service could begin by late 2027, followed by thousands more launches through the end of 2028.

The arrangement gives SpaceX a more complicated relationship with T-Mobile. T-Mobile remains its U.S. mobile partner, and SpaceX leases 10 MHz of nationwide mid-band spectrum from the carrier. Yet the proposed Grain purchase would give SpaceX former T-Mobile spectrum as it pursues its stated carrier ambitions.

Regulatory resistance remains possible. Ars Technica reported that the Rural Wireless Association opposed the earlier EchoStar spectrum sales to AT&T and SpaceX, arguing they would worsen spectrum aggregation for rural providers. No objection to the Grain transaction is established in the available record. NBC News reported that, after the announcement, AT&T shares fell 9.8%, Verizon shares fell 8.7% and T-Mobile shares fell 13.3%.

This story draws on original reporting from Ars Technica.