Space42 and Skylo complete satellite-to-phone SMS and emergency SOS test.
Space42 and US-based Skylo Technologies have successfully completed a two-way SMS and emergency SOS test using a standard Android smartphone connected directly to the Thuraya-4 satellite.
A phone with no mobile signal is often little more than a camera, clock and offline device, particularly in remote areas such as the desert. Space42 aims to change that by enabling ordinary smartphones to send messages, share locations and make emergency calls by connecting directly to a satellite overhead.
The Abu Dhabi-based company, together with US-based Skylo Technologies, has completed a two-way SMS and emergency SOS test between a standard Android smartphone and Space42’s Thuraya-4 satellite.
A phone with no mobile signal is often little more than a camera, clock and offline device, particularly in remote areas such as the desert. Space42 aims to change that by enabling ordinary smartphones to send messages, share locations and make emergency calls by connecting directly to a satellite overhead.
The Abu Dhabi-based company, together with US-based Skylo Technologies, has completed a two-way SMS and emergency SOS test between a standard Android smartphone and Space42’s Thuraya-4 satellite.
The smartphone required no separate antenna or specialised satellite terminal to connect. According to the companies, messages were also routed through the mobile operator’s existing SIM and identity systems without requiring changes to its core network.
The test did not demonstrate unrestricted voice calls, internet browsing or video streaming. Instead, it showed that a compatible standard smartphone could exchange small amounts of data via satellite when terrestrial mobile coverage is unavailable.“Before, if you launched a satellite and had 100,000 subscribers, you were extremely happy,” Ali Al Hashmi, CEO of Space Services at Space42, told Khaleej Times.
“But direct-to-device changes the equation immediately. You literally have access to everybody who owns a phone. Even if you do not have a satellite terminal today, you are still a potential customer. All of us are potential customers.”
Traditional satellite communications have typically required dedicated satellite phones or external terminals equipped with larger antennas. Direct-to-device, or D2D, technology is designed to remove that barrier by allowing compatible smartphones to communicate with satellites using mobile-network standards.
The ultimate goal is for a phone to remain connected to a terrestrial network while a mobile tower is available, then switch to a satellite connection when terrestrial coverage disappears.
Thuraya-4 operates in geostationary orbit about 36,000km above Earth. From that altitude, a single satellite can cover a vast area, but the distance also limits how much data can be efficiently transmitted to a small handset. This is why services such as messaging, emergency alerts and location sharing are likely to arrive before more data-intensive applications such as full internet access and video streaming.
The larger ambition lies with Equatys, a planned venture between Space42 and Viasat. The project is being designed as shared infrastructure that mobile operators could use instead of developing their own satellite networks.
Its proposed architecture could eventually comprise up to 2,800 satellites. However, Al Hashmi said the number of satellites in orbit is only part of the equation. He believes access to spectrum — the limited radio-frequency bands used for communication between phones and satellites — could be a more significant advantage.
“Think about spectrum as the highway for your car,” he said. “If you have the perfect car, but you do not have a highway, you can still go from A to B, but there will be a lot of trouble. It will not be an easy journey. Maybe you need a strong four-wheel drive with a lot of power consumption.”
Al Hashmi said access to spectrum could allow the network to provide connectivity with fewer technical complications and at a lower cost to users. Space42 and Viasat say Equatys could operate across more than 100MHz of globally allocated and coordinated mobile satellite spectrum.
“Everybody is thinking about huge cars and powerful cars to go from A to B,” he said. “I can deliver the same service by building a bus because I own the spectrum. I can make it more efficient, easier and simpler, consume less power, and charge you a bus rate instead of charging you to buy a supercar for the same journey.”
The cost of the service could ultimately determine whether satellite connectivity remains an emergency tool for people in remote areas or becomes a standard feature of everyday mobile subscriptions.
Space42 has signed exploratory agreements with e& UAE and Indonesia’s Telkomsat covering technical integration, licensing and potential field trials.
However, several hurdles remain. Smartphones will need compatible hardware and software, while operators will have to agree on commercial terms and regulators approve spectrum use. Equatys will also need to demonstrate that it can provide reliable connectivity at a price ordinary users are willing to pay.
For Al Hashmi, the ideal outcome is a service in which users barely notice the technology behind their connection.
“You just want to make a phone call regardless of whether it is satellite or non-satellite,” he said. “You do not want to worry about whether you are outside coverage, and when you make that call, you do not want it to kill your bank account at the end of the day.
“It has to be seamless in terms of connectivity and seamless in terms of the end-user experience.”
The UAE test demonstrated that a message can travel between an ordinary smartphone and a satellite. The bigger challenge now is making that connection widely available, automatic and affordable enough that users no longer need to know whether their signal is coming from a mobile tower or a satellite.
