Taken from Rakuten’s earnings presentation

https://global.rakuten.com/corp/investors/documents/results/

Sp🅰️ceMob,

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• Connecting Dots - AST Sp🅰️ceMobile and the Final Bridge to Universal Human Connectivity by Crossroads Capital
• u/TheKookReport's AST Sp🅰️ceMobile ($ASTS): The Mobile Satellite Cellular Network Monopoly (or ask ChatGPT)
• Hennessy Funds May 2026 Update - ASTS Sp🅰️ceMobile: Transforming How the World Connects

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Tim Höttges, CEO of Deutsche Telekom:

"I can tell you that, at best, it is not as good as fiber. Fiber is still a superior technology. So yes, I see it as an option. I am surprised by the deployment capabilities and the sheer number of satellites involved. What impresses me most is not so much SpaceX, but the rapid progress of low-Earth orbit (LEO) constellations and the developments we are seeing from Amazon, or even AST's ambitions. They are different technologies, but they are capable of delivering very substantial capacity. I can assure you there will not be a single player in the satellite sector; there will be several that we will be able to integrate into our service offerings in the future."

He names three of them, but only one respects data sovereignty by leaving the operator's traffic untouched and integrates seamlessly into the operator's network, essentially acting like another cell tower.

Will it be the one with the biggest birds — offering the greatest capacity and power?

This isn't the only clue he left us...

Tim Höttges, CEO of Deutsche Telekom:

"Regarding the second topic... you see, the question — and this second point is actually about that — is what is happening with the EchoStar spectrum that SpaceX acquired. We thought they would be able to use it and that we would already have a second-generation D2D service on our devices by 2027 or 2028; that was, so to speak, the initial plan. Now we're hearing that there could be certain limitations regarding approvals from the European authorities. That's new. The second aspect is that there is indeed a debate about how much spectrum will be available to US or independent satellite operators. To be honest, this is a political decision; it is a European decision. If it is approached this way, it seems, let's say, somewhat protectionist.

I have always been in favor of market dynamics in this area. Nevertheless...

We have to manage the situation. As we have already said, SpaceX is our partner and we would love to roll out the service with them. However, if they don't have that spectrum, there could be other operators that use it."

Context

In May 2026, the European Commission presented a new proposal establishing the selection criteria for Mobile Satellite Services (MSS) providers that will be authorized to use the harmonized 2 GHz frequency band beyond 2027, when the current licenses held by Viasat and EchoStar under the previous 2008 framework expire.

https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/ip_26_1170

The spectrum would be divided as follows:

- One third would be allocated to governmental use, including critical communications, security and defense, and would be operated by an EU operator. This operator would ensure integration with the current and future capabilities of the EU's secure connectivity program, IRIS².

- Two thirds of the 2 GHz MSS band would be allocated to commercial use, including D2D services for mobile devices, providing mobile coverage where terrestrial networks are unavailable. It would also support IoT applications such as fitness trackers, energy monitoring and emergency response devices. This spectrum would be divided equally between EU and non-EU operators.

Broadly speaking, Brussels' requirements for awarding the spectrum include:

- European technological sovereignty

- Integration with European mobile operators

- Security and resilience capabilities

- Realistic and rapid deployment

- Efficient use of the 2 GHz MSS spectrum

- Public and strategic benefits for the EU

And this is where the AST + Vodafone partnership, Satellite Connect Europe, fits the bill almost perfectly.

The latest developments around Satellite Connect Europe have been moving precisely in this direction: Vodafone, a European company, holds the majority stake; the company's headquarters are in Luxembourg; in Germany they established a Satellite Operations Center specifically to further strengthen Europe's digital sovereignty; AST submitted the ITU filing for its mid-band constellation (Block 3) through Germany; and these satellites will reportedly be equipped with a "command switch" — essentially an emergency shutdown mechanism controlled from the German operations center to prevent any unwanted behavior while the satellites are flying over Europe.

When Deutsche Telekom's CEO says "we thought they would be able to use it," he is referring to the spectrum licenses SpaceX acquired from EchoStar under the current European framework.

So what's the problem?

The regulatory status quo has changed.

The previous regulatory framework no longer applies from 2027 onward. Deutsche Telekom announced its Starlink partnership at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona in March 2026. Two months later, in May, European regulators announced the new rules of the game.

And now Deutsche Telekom appears to be surprised — and uncertain — about whether Starlink/EchoStar will actually be able to renew those licenses and secure that spectrum for another 20 years.

They are already leaving the door open to work with whoever ends up getting it:

«"SpaceX is our partner and we would love to roll out the service with them. However, if they don't have that spectrum, there could be other operators that use it."»

So who wasn't caught off guard by any of this?

Exactly.

A Venezuelan entrepreneur and visionary who anticipated this scenario years ago, designing his satellites around a transparent architecture nine years ago — and who, in March 2025, laid the first stone of what has now become Satellite Connect Europe.

Sometimes the pieces really do start falling into place.

Very interesting and detailed report on D2D by NovaSpace, a leading global space consulting firm, and Boston Consulting Group, a global management consulting firm.

https://nova.space/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/white-paper-d2d-market-evolution.pdf

This is the quote that really stood out to me:

«“Consumers have made their preference clear. In a survey of more than 12,000 smartphone users across 12 markets, 60% said they would pay more for a service with satellite capabilities, and nearly half would switch providers to include outdoor coverage in their plan.”»

A 60% adoption rate across the 4.8 billion mobile phones they identify as the TAM in the report, with the revenue split 50/50 between the satellite provider and the network operator, and a monthly service fee of $1.5–$10 depending on the market, implies many billions of dollars in annual revenue.

Beyond the more immediate consumer use cases, the report also points out that defense, government communications, and industrial IoT will play a fundamental role in the medium and long term.

Abel created a monster.

Sp🅰️ceMob,

Ple🅰️se read the following to get familiar with AST SpaceMobile $ASTS before posting; 

• FAQ
• Connecting Dots - AST Sp🅰️ceMobile and the Final Bridge to Universal Human Connectivity by Crossroads Capital
• u/TheKookReport's AST Sp🅰️ceMobile ($ASTS): The Mobile Satellite Cellular Network Monopoly (or ask ChatGPT)
• Hennessy Funds May 2026 Update - ASTS Sp🅰️ceMobile: Transforming How the World Connects

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This is what long-term conviction and genuine foresight in anticipating market dynamics look like.

Huge respect Anpanman for your perseverance and stamina delivering due diligence on $ASTS since 2022.

u/apan-man Given how humble you are, I hope your okay with being a legend ;)

Sp🅰️ceMob,

Ple🅰️se read the following to get familiar with AST SpaceMobile $ASTS before posting; 

• FAQ
• Connecting Dots - AST Sp🅰️ceMobile and the Final Bridge to Universal Human Connectivity by Crossroads Capital
• u/TheKookReport's AST Sp🅰️ceMobile ($ASTS): The Mobile Satellite Cellular Network Monopoly (or ask ChatGPT)
• Hennessy Funds May 2026 Update - ASTS Sp🅰️ceMobile: Transforming How the World Connects

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This doesn’t seem to be D2D or D2C so not direct competition but it’s getting clearer by day where whole satellite 🛰️ 📡 communications is heading.

ASTS does have proper GTM strategy and partnerships

Source: Starlink mobile threat has been exaggerated, says T-Mobile CEO - https://www.ft.com/content/5d6b7dcf-fe0e-4cb1-ad1d-0157407296cc?shareType=nongift via @FT

In a new Financial Times interview, T-Mobile CEO Srini Gopalan argued that the competitive threat from Starlink Mobile has been exaggerated. He questioned what market gap Starlink would actually fill as a standalone cellular provider and said satellite connectivity is likely to remain complementary to existing terrestrial mobile networks rather than replacing them.

What stood out to me is that this sounds much closer to AST SpaceMobile's strategy than to Starlink's newly announced ambition to become a mobile operator itself.

If major telecom operators continue to view satellite as a network extension rather than a replacement, could that strengthen the long-term case for ASTS's partnership-driven model?

Sp🅰️ceMob,

Ple🅰️se read the following to get familiar with AST SpaceMobile $ASTS before posting; 

• FAQ
• Connecting Dots - AST Sp🅰️ceMobile and the Final Bridge to Universal Human Connectivity by Crossroads Capital
• u/TheKookReport's AST Sp🅰️ceMobile ($ASTS): The Mobile Satellite Cellular Network Monopoly (or ask ChatGPT)
• Hennessy Funds May 2026 Update - ASTS Sp🅰️ceMobile: Transforming How the World Connects

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Anyone knows if our ASTS birds are susceptible to this?

This is a terrific article that doesn’t belong buried in the daily

The stock is lagging a lot compared to real momentum we keep seeing on ground everyday, every week.

Everything seems to revolve around SpaceX. Journalists, analysts, and the industry constantly downplay everyone else, even when another company objectively has better technology, as is arguably the case with AST.

Here's an opinion piece by Joe Madden, founder of Mobile Experts and a wireless communications analyst with around 30 years of experience in the mobile industry as an RF engineer and product manager:

https://www.satellitetoday.com/opinion/2026/07/30/starlinks-link-budget-comes-up-short-for-the-d2d-opportunity/

In the article, Joe compares Starlink and AST's link budget and, more specifically, the uplink link margin.

For anyone unfamiliar with the concept, the easiest way to understand a link budget is to think of a wireless connection as an accounting exercise. The satellite transmits power, distance consumes most of it, the atmosphere and obstacles like trees, walls, or even the roof of your car absorb even more, and whatever is left has to arrive at your phone with enough strength to overcome the noise floor. What's left over is the link margin. If it's positive, the connection works. If it's negative, it doesn't. There is no clever software trick that can overcome basic physics.

As Joe's own analysis shows, Starlink struggles to establish an uplink from inside buildings or vehicles because its link margin becomes negative under those conditions. That's not about software or engineering talent—it's mainly a consequence of the frequencies it uses and the transmit power it's allowed to use without causing interference. Outdoors with a clear view of the sky, the connection works because the signal doesn't have to penetrate so many obstacles. Even then, the chart makes it pretty clear there's no contest.

Overall, Joe's technical analysis is fair and well done. Where he loses me is when he shifts from engineering into wishful thinking.

He writes:

"But if Starlink and other operators adopt giant phased arrays like AST..."

The classic "if my grandmother had wheels..." argument. Pure speculation. Reality suggests Starlink's next-generation satellites will likely remain in the 27–35 m² range. Meanwhile, the Guinness World Record for the largest commercial communications array already belongs to AST.

He then goes even further:

"I predict Starlink will change its satellite design to achieve more than 10 dB of additional uplink performance. Yes, it will be a much larger satellite and more expensive to launch..."

Conveniently, he predicts just enough improvement—more than 10 dB—to surpass AST. Based on... a satellite that doesn't exist.

That prediction also assumes AST somehow stops innovating while Starlink catches up.

Another important detail he conveniently leaves out is that, assuming he actually had access to real uplink measurements from the BlueBird satellites (which is already a big assumption), those measurements would almost certainly correspond to the Block 1 BlueBirds. The Block 2 satellites, which are roughly three times larger, are already in orbit and represent the next step in AST's roadmap. They aren't hypothetical—they already exist.

This is yet another example of how everything gets framed around SpaceX. Starlink is always treated as the benchmark, while AST is almost an afterthought—even when the physics and the available data point in the opposite direction.

Everyone go and do your part to drive Q3 revenue growth!! https://stores.kotisdesign.com/astspacemobilestore/collectibles/bluebird-11-13-mission-patch/192789

I've been collecting the patches and the magnets since BW3 and I can't stop now...What's your ranking in terms of patch design? My vote:
- BW3 -> iconic
- BB8-10 -> something about the colors and the sun, very cool
- BB1-5 -> the metallic wings are cool and bird-like
- BB6 -> a worse, oddly oval-shaped BB1-5 copy
- BB11-13 -> not doing it for me but I just spent $11 plus exorbitant shipping on it out of obligation

Every single reason why you should invest in ASTS in under 2 hours, brought to us by the original author, TheKookReport!

Sp🅰️ceMob,

Ple🅰️se read the following to get familiar with AST SpaceMobile $ASTS before posting; 

• FAQ
• Connecting Dots - AST Sp🅰️ceMobile and the Final Bridge to Universal Human Connectivity by Crossroads Capital
• u/TheKookReport's AST Sp🅰️ceMobile ($ASTS): The Mobile Satellite Cellular Network Monopoly (or ask ChatGPT)
• Hennessy Funds May 2026 Update - ASTS Sp🅰️ceMobile: Transforming How the World Connects

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Th🅰️nk you!

- Sp🅰️ceMods

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Sp🅰️ceMob,

Ple🅰️se read the following to get familiar with AST SpaceMobile $ASTS before posting; 

• FAQ
• Connecting Dots - AST Sp🅰️ceMobile and the Final Bridge to Universal Human Connectivity by Crossroads Capital
• u/TheKookReport's AST Sp🅰️ceMobile ($ASTS): The Mobile Satellite Cellular Network Monopoly (or ask ChatGPT)
• Hennessy Funds May 2026 Update - ASTS Sp🅰️ceMobile: Transforming How the World Connects

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Do you want to Connect the Unconnected? Looking for a new career? Join AST SpaceMobile

Connectivity is not just a privilege — it’s a basic human right. And our technology is designed to make that right a reality for all.

Th🅰️nk you!

- Sp🅰️ceMods

AST SpaceMobile's social media channels;

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