Ofcom will consult on opening the airwaves to “direct to device” connections from Internet satellites such as Starlink to provide mobile coverage in “not spots”.
The regulator said that, if agreed, services could be offered to consumers “later in 2025”.
Both Starlink, run by Elon Musk’s rocket company SpaceX, and Amazon’s rival service, Kuiper, are developing satellite constellations to provide mobile signals to phones. Mobile networks are in the early stages of testing them.EE has signed a trial agreement with Starlink to use SpaceX’s low-earth orbit satellites to provide connections in areas where mobile signal is poor.
Virgin Media O2 already uses Starlink connections to strengthen the network that carries traffic between cellular towers.
Vodafone has signed deals with Amazon.
Starlink recently won approval in the U.S. to provide customers of the T-Mobile network with connections and has launched its first satellites designed to provide mobile service.
Satellite internet services provide blanket geographical coverage from space, rather than relying on being close to cellular towers that can be ¬uneconomical to build in sparsely populated regions.
Usage of Starlink, which acts as an alternative to home broadband, has increased in rural areas. Ofcom said that 87,000 households were now using Starlink in Britain - more than double the 42,000 subscribers last year.