Elon Musk owned Starlink might be considering partnering with Vodafone Group Plc in order to expand its satellite broadband services in the UK, as reported by Telegraph on Sunday. The agency cited anonymous people for the given information.
A Vodafone spokesperson told the Telegraph, “Regarding satellite spectrum, we can confirm we are in talks with multiple operators. We’re close to striking a deal.”
As noted by Telegraph, Starlink is in search of ground station infrastructure and high-frequency spectrum so that it may expand the capacity of its service.
The newspaper also mentioned a Vodafone filing with UK industry regulator Ofcom stating that “the company is open to approaches from satellite companies that may want to lease the spectrum it holds under license for use in gateway links to their satellites.”
Starlink and U.K.-backed OneWeb are acting rivals in the satellite broadband business currently, offering internet from low-earth orbit to consumers and businesses in regions of the world where terrestrial fixed and wireless communications are not profitable.
Both are seeking out partnerships with telecommunication companies as part of the process. In September, OneWeb had announced a deal with AT&T Inc. for the latter to use OneWeb’s satellites to offer broadband to businesses in remote areas.
Starlink has previously said it signed deals with two “major country” telecom operators that it hasn’t named, as Musk’s Space Exploration Technologies Corp. approaches near-global coverage for Starlink.