COMARA is compiling periodically a collection of links to news articles about the satellite industry to help our members keep abreast of key developments. Publications that require a paid subscription to view their articles are excluded.
We welcome suggestions of additional articles that you feel will be of interest to our members. They can be sent to [email protected].
November 2024
Several articles discuss the October 19 breakup of the Intelsat 33e satellite and the associated impacts: https://spacenews.com/intelsat-33e-loses-power-in-geostationary-orbit/
https://spacenews.com/exoanalytic-observes-500-pieces-of-debris-from-intelsat-33e-breakup/
US DOD is increasing its projected spending on LEO satellite internet services more than tenfold, responding to surging demand from across the military, according to SpaceNews: https://spacenews.com/pentagons-commercial-satellite-internet-services-program-soars-to-13-billion/
Viasat is in advanced talks to buy broadband capacity from Telesat’s future LEO satellites as competition from Starlink competition mounts: https://spacenews.com/viasat-seeking-telesat-leo-capacity-as-starlink-competition-mounts/
The Motley Fool analyzes the economics behind Amazon’s Project Kuiper and concludes that it is likely to be a money-losing venture: https://www.fool.com/investing/2024/10/13/prediction-amazoncom-will-lose-money-on-project-ku/
The European Commission picks a consortium led by SES, Eutelsat and Hispasat to deploy the IRIS² satellite constellation: https://www.defensenews.com/global/europe/2024/11/04/europe-picks-consortium-for-sovereign-satellite-constellation-iris/
Logos Space has early financial commitments needed to deploy 1,000 satellites for global broadband coverage, according to ex-Google executive behind the startup: https://spacenews.com/ex-google-exec-attracts-financial-backers-for-leo-megaconstellation/
Australia scraps a defense satellite program because of the threat of new technology that can “shoot satellites out of the sky”; plans to use instead a mesh of micro satellites: https://www.yahoo.com/tech/australia-scrapped-satellite-because-tech-033521387.html
Fortune Magazine looks at how Elon Musk’s $130 million investment in Trump’s victory could reap a huge payoff for Starlink, Tesla and the rest of his business empire: https://fortune.com/2024/11/06/elon-musk-donald-trump-tesla-spacex-xai-boring-neuralink/
Apple plans to inject $1.7 billion into Globalstar for a new constellation to improve space-based communications for iPhones: https://spacenews.com/globalstar-soars-on-apples-1-5-billion-satellite-investment/
World’s first wooden satellite, developed in Japan, heads to space: https://www.reuters.com/technology/space/worlds-first-wooden-satellite-developed-japan-heads-space-2024-11-05/
Former Intelsat executive Ramu Potarazu joins Lynk Global as CEO: https://spacenews.com/former-intelsat-executive-joins-lynk-global-as-ceo/
September 2024
Gogo to acquire Satcom Direct, owner of the residual COMSAT Mobile Communications business: https://www.satellitetoday.com/mobility/2024/09/30/gogo-acquires-satcom-direct-to-offer-multi-orbit-ifc-solutions/
Joe Pelton has just prepared a presentation called “The Future of Space” that he presented at the Alliance for Collaboration in the Exploration of Space (ACES Worldwide)
NATO awards SES contract for MEO services for US and Luxembourg: https://www.satellitetoday.com/government-military/2024/09/11/nato-awards-ses-contract-for-meo-services-for-us-luxembourg/
SES’s CEO discusses why the company plans to steer clear of the Direct-to-Device market: https://www.fierce-network.com/wireless/ses-ceo-mulls-its-role-crowded-d2d-space
SES wins $46 million U.S. Air Force contract for satellite services: https://spacenews.com/ses-wins-46-million-u-s-air-force-contract-for-satellite-services/
Viasat is awarded Blue Force Tracker (BFT) Network Services Contract by Defense Information Services Agency (DISA): https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/viasat-awarded-potential-150-million-blue-force-tracker-bft-network-services-contract-by-defense-information-services-agency-disa-302239034.html
Inmarsat to incorporate Eutelsat’s OneWeb LEO network into maritime services: https://www.spacedaily.com/reports/Inmarsat_to_incorporate_Eutelsats_OneWeb_LEO_network_into_maritime_services_999.html
Eutelsat’s US subsidiary unveils the new executive team for Eutelsat America Corp. and OneWeb Technologies (EACOWT): https://www.satellitetoday.com/people/2024/09/19/eutelsats-us-subsidiary-debuts-new-exec-team-for-combined-company/
Roger Cochetti examines the Global Digital Compact, a major international agreement on the Internet, artificial intelligence and high-tech: https://thehill.com/opinion/technology/4831121-global-digital-compact-tech-policy/
Tim Lee is the newly elected President of IEEE. Please click on his name to read more.
Joe Pelton has just prepared a presentation called “The Future of Space” that he presented at the Alliance for Collaboration in the Exploration of Space (ACES Worldwide)
June 2024
COMARA Board member Roger Cochetti discusses in Via Satellite how the SES acquisition of Intelsat represents a new chapter in the history of the Space Age: https://www.satellitetoday.com/opinion/2024/06/04/ses-acquisition-of-intelsat-marks-a-new-chapter-in-the-history-of-the-space-age/
SES explains the strategy behind the Intelsat acquisition: https://www.satellitetoday.com/finance/2024/04/30/ses-explains-the-strategy-behind-its-long-anticipated-acquisition-of-intelsat/
SES begins providing broadband communications with its first six O3b mPower satellites: https://spacenews.com/boeing-built-o3b-mpower-satellites-begin-service/
Viasat buys capacity from OneWeb for maritime customers in the latest multi-orbit challenge to Starlink’s growing dominance: https://spacenews.com/viasat-taps-oneweb-to-provide-multi-orbit-maritime-broadband/
Inmarsat rolls out an integrated multi-network satcom service: https://maritime-executive.com/article/inmarsat-rolls-out-an-integrated-multi-network-satcom-service
EU’s plans to develop an independent satellite network runs into problems: https://arstechnica.com/space/2024/05/europes-ambitious-satellite-internet-project-appears-to-be-running-into-trouble/
Scientists in Japan plan to launch first wooden satellite in space, aiming to explore ways to reduce pollution generated when satellites burn up upon reentry to earth: https://www.iflscience.com/worlds-first-wooden-satellite-to-launch-this-year-could-combat-space-pollution-74559
April 2024
Intelsat’s CEO discusses how the company is refocusing its business, including potential deals relating to MEO, land mobility, and direct-to-handset: https://interactive.satellitetoday.com/via/satellite-2024-show-daily-day-2/intelsat-ceo-wajsgras-previews-deals-in-meo-land-mobility-and-direct-to-handset/
Intelsat expands partnership with OneWeb for LEO capacity: https://spacenews.com/intelsat-expands-oneweb-leo-partnership/
Intelsat executive makes the case for multi-orbit inflight connectivity solutions versus LEO-only: https://runwaygirlnetwork.com/2024/02/intelsat-multi-orbit-versus-leo-only/
ViaSat provides update on ViaSat-3 during its February 2024 earnings call: https://spacenews.com/viasat-preparing-to-start-services-from-hobbled-viasat-3-satellite/
ViaSat teams with Northrop Grumman on the Defense Experimentation Using Commercial Space Internet (DEUCSI) program: https://spacenews.com/viasat-links-up-with-northrop-grumman-for-air-force-communications-experiment/
Eutelsat decides to hold off deploying significantly upgraded OneWeb broadband satellites: https://spacenews.com/eutelsat-scales-back-oneweb-gen-2-upgrade-plan/
Iridium announces plans to acquire GPS backup provider Satelles: https://spacenews.com/iridium-to-take-over-gps-backup-provider-for-115-million/
House Democrats open investigation of Elon Musk’s SpaceX, examining whether the company implemented adequate safeguards to prevent Russia from deploying its Starlink satellite internet service in eastern Ukraine: https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2024/03/07/starlink-musk-spacex-russia/
Satellite manufacturers insist that demand for GEO satellites has not gone away: https://spacenews.com/satellite-manufacturers-defend-diminished-geo-market/
COMARA Director Roger Cochetti’s recent editorial for The Hill newspaper examines how global trade negotiations taking place this week may well be moving away from such longstanding Internet principles as the free flow of information and prohibitions on Internet trade tariffs: https://thehill.com/opinion/technology/4496916-for-25-years-the-wto-has-protected-the-free-flow-of-information-online-this-year-that-could-change/
January 2024
Google and AT&T invest in Starlink rival for satellite-to-smartphone service: https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2024/01/google-and-att-invest-in-starlink-rival-for-satellite-to-smartphone-service/
Iridium pivots to standardized direct-to-device satellite services: https://spacenews.com/iridium-pivots-to-standardized-direct-to-device-satellite-services/
Air Force taps Intelsat for commercial space internet project: https://defensescoop.com/2023/12/29/afrl-deucsi-intelsat-commercial-space-internet/
Intelsat expects $2.1B in revenue this year; company execs outline pivot to solutions provider: https://www.satellitetoday.com/finance/2023/12/01/intelsat-expects-2-1b-revenue-this-year-execs-outline-pivot-to-solutions-provider/
Viasat successfully demonstrates the UK sovereign satellite navigation overlay for the first time: https://news.satnews.com/2024/01/21/viasat-successfully-demos-the-uk-sovereign-satellite-navigation-overlay-for-the-1st-time/
U.S. Air Force awards Viasat up To $900 million multi-vendor technology integration and architecture contract: https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/us-air-force-awards-viasat-up-to-900-million-multi-vendor-technology-integration-and-architecture-contract-302023037.html
Project Kuiper, Amazon’s answer to SpaceX’s Starlink, passes ‘crucial’ test: https://www.space.com/project-kuiper-passes-crucial-test
Musk appears to again rule out taking Starlink public: https://spacenews.com/musk-not-eager-to-take-starlink-public/
COMARA Director Roger Cochetti’s most recently editorial tries to make sense out of the global tsunami of policy pronouncements on artificial intelligence (AI) that took place in 2023. As he notes, virtually every week we saw screaming headlines about AI and in this editorial he connects these dots and put them into historical context. To view the editorial: https://thehill.com/opinion/technology/4389011-making-sense-of-2023s-tsunami-of-ai-policy-changes/
December 2023
COMARA Director Roger Cochetti has just published his perspective on the possibilities and advantages of international cooperation in space: https://thehill.com/opinion/technology/4334188-another-cold-war-another-space-race-and-another-chance-for-cooperation/