Amazon today announced two satellite deals that it hopes will make its Amazon Leo network a more formidable competitor to SpaceX’s Starlink.
Amazon signed a merger agreement to buy satellite operator Globalstar and said it entered into an agreement with Apple to provide satellite service for iPhones and Apple Watches.
Amazon is spending an estimated $11.6 billion for Globalstar, which already partnered with Apple for satellite messaging on the iPhone.
Amazon said that buying Globalstar will help it enter the Direct-to-Device (D2D) market in which satellites provide connectivity to mobile phones.
“In addition to the agreement with Globalstar, Amazon and Apple signed an agreement to provide satellite connectivity for current and future iPhone and Apple Watch features,” according to Amazon, which operates the Amazon Leo satellite network formerly known as Kuiper Systems.
Panos Panay, Amazon’s senior VP of devices and services, said the Apple deal will make Amazon the “primary satellite service provider for iPhone and Apple Watch.”
The current Globalstar service works with the iPhone 14 and later models, and the Apple Watch Ultra 3, “allowing users to text emergency services, message friends and family, request roadside assistance, and share their location,” Amazon said.
Amazon said it will continue to support those Apple device models and “collaborate with Apple on future satellite services using Amazon Leo’s expanded satellite network.”
Globalstar stockholders will be given a choice between $90 in cash per share or “0.3210 shares of Amazon common stock with a value capped at $90.00 per share,” Amazon said.
The final deal value may fluctuate based on Amazon’s stock price, and has been estimated at either $10.8 billion or $11.6 billion depending on the source. Globalstar reportedly held talks with SpaceX about selling to Musk’s company last year.
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Amazon’s press release includes a quote from Greg Joswiak, Apple’s senior VP of worldwide product marketing.
“Apple and Amazon have a long and proven track record of working together through Amazon’s core infrastructure services, and we look forward to building on that collaboration with Amazon Leo,” he said.
“This ensures our users will continue to have access to the vital satellite features they have come to rely on, including Emergency SOS, Messages, Find My, and Roadside Assistance via satellite, so they can stay safe and connected while off the grid.”
Amazon didn’t go into much more detail about the features it will support on Apple devices.
Bloomberg reported in November that Apple was working on a satellite framework for third-party apps that would let developers add satellite connections to their apps.
Apple was also reportedly working on satellite-powered maps and richer messaging capabilities for satellite connections.
Amazon and Globalstar operate at smaller scales than Starlink, which already has over 10,000 satellites in orbit and plans for many more.
So far, Starlink’s constellation includes about 650 D2D satellites for mobile service, which is offered through T-Mobile in the US and other carriers abroad.
Amazon has deployed 241 satellites and says it will have over 3,000 when its initial satellite constellation is complete.
Globalstar operates 24 satellites in low-Earth orbit (LEO) and has said its third-generation system, or C-3, will include 48 additional satellites.
It’ll take at least a couple of years for Amazon’s Globalstar plans to come to fruition.
The merger is expected to close in 2027, subject to regulatory approval and a requirement that Globalstar meet deadlines for replacing some of its satellites.
The next year, if all goes to plan, Amazon will deploy a new D2D service.
