The surest sign that a market has commercial potential comes when government and regulatory bodies start drafting regulation around it, and in what could herald the start of a new comms business in the UK, the country’s communications regulator, Ofcom, has announced it is proposing to allow mobile networks and satellite operators to use mobile airwaves – called radio spectrum – to connect mainstream handsets in the UK.
Explaining the reasons for the new consultation, Ofcom noted that the onset of what it called “cutting-edge” direct-to-device technology means satellites in space can now beam signals straight to standard smartphones, so they can make calls, send texts and connect to the internet when there is no coverage from mobile masts on the ground. It added that previously, mobile satellite services from space have mainly been available to a niche group of users – for example, on ships and aircraft – with specialist, expensive handsets.
To date, the UK’s connectivity has been on a roll, with Ofcom announcing just days ago the steps that it says are needed to give the UK almost total access to full-fibre connectivity, including hard-to-reach places through its Project Gigabit programme. In addition, in January 2025, the UK government revealed that 30 mast upgrades funded under its £1.3bn Shared Rural Network (SRN) programme – a joint initiative between the UK’s four mobile network operators and the UK government to extend 4G connectivity to 95% of the UK’s landmass by the end of 2025 – have now been activated, with 21 sites now live in Wales, five in Scotland and four in England.
Yet at the end of 2024, the UK government revealed a scheme to be backed by the UK Space Agency, offering up to £3.5m in funding to test hybrid satellite connectivity services with the aim of connecting some of the very hardest-to-reach places in the UK.
The government noted that despite what it calls the significant progress made on superfast and gigabit-capable broadband, certain remote and rural locations across the UK still face challenges where satellites offer the only practical solution for connectivity. These areas, it said, are often characterised by difficult terrain and sparse populations, and make traditional infrastructure costly and impractical.
In January 2025, in what the operator called “an historic first”, Vodafone Group revealed it had completed the first-ever space-based video call using standard 4G/5G smartphones over a satellite built to offer a full mobile broadband experience to a part of rural Wales, with no masts to provide mobile terrestrial mobile coverage.
For its part, Ofcom believes that if space communications were more widely available, it would help connect the UK’s most rural and hard-to-reach places, getting a signal in remote villages and up mountains, and could provide vital backup options during outages. Moreover, Ofcom added that, given advances in this technology, it was minded to allow mobile networks and satellite operators to use mobile spectrum to connect mainstream handsets and complement existing terrestrial networks.
Under its proposals, Ofcom would authorise these direct-to-device services using a range of frequencies that are already used by the mobile sector, and there would be strict conditions attached to avoid interference.
To ensure its conditions were followed, Ofcom said it was considering three authorisation approaches. The preferred approach is to amend the licenses already held by mobile network operators and create an accompanying exemption for mobile handsets connecting to these services. Alternatively, Ofcom suggested that it could introduce a new licence for these services or permit licence-exempt use subject to specific conditions being met.
The move means the UK is the first nation in Europe to move ahead with proposals for direct-to-device services to be authorised for widespread commercial use, which could be rolled out from as early as this year.
Ofcom’s consultation on these proposals closes on 20 May. Commenting on the objectives of the consultation, David Willis, Ofcom’s spectrum group director, said: “For years, we’ve seen satellite calls in disaster movies on special handsets. We’re now on the cusp of people being able to make them on their everyday smartphones. Ofcom always strives to be at the forefront of technological change, and we’re the first country in Europe to press ahead with the next frontier in mobile connectivity. This would unlock investment, open doors to innovation and growth, and bring much-needed mobile coverage to rural areas.”
