In a mobile market in search of new frontiers, manufacturers are turning to space with the development of “satphone” functionality (contraction of “satellite” and “smart phone”), thanks in particular to the growth in connectivity space, under the leadership of players like Starlink of American billionaire Elon Musk.
In the shadow of sector giants Samsung, Xiaomi and Honor, obsessed with the prospects of artificial intelligence, the Emirati satellite telecommunications company Thuraya has rushed into a unique niche, at the world mobile fair in Barcelona, by presenting to the public a “universal smartphone” offering “cellular and satellite” connectivity for an “affordable” but undisclosed price.
Called Skyphone, the device, scheduled for release in the “third quarter” of 2024, offers the ability to make calls and send messages via satellite in more than 150 countries thanks to a roaming partnership (roaming) with more than 370 operators, while traditional satellite phones are very expensive and unwieldy.
“Users don’t want to constantly switch from satellite phones to their “normal” phones. They want to use their own daily phone to access WhatsApp or social networks even when they go on adventures” in areas not covered by mobile networks, explains to AFP Sulaiman Al Ali, general manager of Thuraya, who has its own satellites covering the Middle East, Africa and Europe.
Only Huawei with its Mate 60 Pro, only available on the Chinese market, offers a similar service on the general public market.
Because if Apple was a pioneer among the major manufacturers by integrating the possibility of sending SOS by satellite from its iPhone 14, the manufacturers of smartphones operating with the Android operating system (Google) have not yet followed .
The American company Qualcomm, which was to equip its models with suitable chips, announced at the end of December that it had ended its partnership with the satellite communications company Iridium.
But other companies are expected to follow the “satphone” trend. According to Deloitte, more than 200 million smartphones capable of connecting to satellite services will be sold in 2024.
“It is useful to have a smartphone [téléphone intelligent] capable of sending a preconfigured text in case of emergency, but a smartphone capable of sending messages in real time and making voice calls would be even more useful and would promote adoption” of this service, underlines to AFP Duncan Stewart, director of Technology, Media and Telecommunications research at Deloitte.
“For the moment we were still on somewhat premium lines, in case of emergency. Ultimately, there will be such a proliferation of satellites in low orbit that it could become an alternative to the traditional telecoms network, particularly in certain white areas or in places where, economically, it is less viable,” adds Thomas Husson, analyst at Forrester.
Spatial Internet boom
The growing development of “satphones” takes place in a context where the spatial Internet is stimulated by the development of high-speed connectivity in low orbit (OTB), intended to serve isolated and difficult-to-access regions without going through terrestrial infrastructure (cable networks, optical fiber or mobile antennas).
In this market estimated at 16 billion dollars by 2030, giants have already launched major maneuvers, like the merger between the operators Eutelsat and OneWeb, the Amazon constellation or even the juggernaut Starlink.
The company led by Elon Musk, which has taken a head start by establishing itself as one of the world’s leading satellite Internet providers with more than two million customers, has for example entered into a partnership with the German operator T-Mobile to carry out satellite telephony tests in the United States.
“Between the satellite operator, the telecoms operator and the manufacturer, there will be a game of alliances that will be formed,” predicts Thomas Husson.
Especially since “if the smartphones can connect to satellites using existing 5G standards, protocols and technologies, they will likely be used more,” adds Duncan Stewart.