Amazon Leo’s plan to build and deploy a direct-to-device (D2D) system comprised of more than 5,000 satellites is about to get its closeup at the FCC.
On Wednesday (August 19), the FCC accepted Amazon Leo’s plan (PDF download) for the D2D service and established a set of deadlines and periods for petitions, comments and replies. “The Bureau finds the Application, upon initial review, to be acceptable for filing and seeks comment on the Application and associated requests for waiver,” the agency said.
Amazon Leo filed its proposal in July, outlining a plan to build out a D2D system of 5,105 low-Earth orbit (LEO) satellites that will complement the D2D satellites Amazon will obtain via its pending acquisition of Globalstar. Those new LEO satellites will be launched at altitudes ranging between 510 kilometers and 580 kilometers.
Amazon Leo expects its new D2D satellites to have a “nominal operational lifetime” of six to eight years, depending on the orbit. The satellite operator will actively deorbit them when they reach end of life.
Amazon Leo’s proposed system will be backed by D2D-optimized satellites with service links in the 1.6GHz-2.4GHz band, supporting feeder links, telemetry, tracking and command links in the Ka-band and V-band. Amazon Leo said it will use additional, available L-band and S-band frequencies to provide service links outside the US.
Amazon Leo intends to deploy five orbital shells for D2D, with each optimized to serve a different part of the planet. The three mid-latitude shells will cover heavily-populated regions and the two high-latitude shells will extend service toward the planet’s more remote areas (including polar areas). Amazon Leo also reiterated that the coming D2D constellation will work Apple devices (including iPhones and Apple Watch models) and complement a broadband network that is expected to launch commercially later this year.
Amazon’s D2D ambitions will get a jump-start when the Globalstar deal closes, and continue to provide an alternative or complement to D2D systems from companies such as SpaceX and AST SpaceMobile and Elveo (created by the combo of Lynk and Omnispace), and the recently formed D2D joint venture from AT&T, T-Mobile and Verizon.
Amazon Leo has previously said that it expects to launch its own D2D system sometime in 2028, citing use cases such as emergency messaging, in-vehicle connectivity and IoT applications.
Amazon’s pending deal for Globalstar received a sole objection (from an erstwhile partner of Globalstar called Yippy). It’s not clear how much static Amazon Leo’s D2D plan will get, but we’ll know more in the coming weeks.
The FCC said initial comments and petitions are due on September 17, with responses to comments and oppositions due on September 28. Replies to responses and oppositions are due October 5. Those filings will be made in the FCC docket (number 26-866).
