Internet from space: Musk's SpaceX buys US frequencies for mobile communications

Elon Musk's space company SpaceX is laying the foundation for establishing itself as a mobile communications provider with a large frequency purchase in the USA. With the Starlink service, SpaceX currently offers fast internet directly from satellites from space. However, reception on Earth requires a receiving device with its own antenna - and a clear view of the satellite is also required. With the licenses that have now been acquired, SpaceX emphasized that the signal can also be sent through walls and supplied to conventional devices such as smartphones.

The announcement sent shares of the major mobile phone providers plummeting on the stock market. AT&T's share price temporarily fell by around seven percent in after-hours trading, while shares from the Deutsche Telekom subsidiary T-Mobile US and Verizon both fell by more than six percent. Tech billionaire Musk emphasized that they would now be able to completely cover the USA. There are large sections of the country without mobile internet.

SpaceX is now waiting for permission from the telecommunications regulator FCC to combine satellite Internet with a terrestrial network. The seller of the frequency spectrum was the investment company Grain Management. The purchase price was not initially disclosed.