Verizon and AT&T Downplay SpaceX Wireless Competition Threat

Verizon CEO Dan Schulman stated during a third-quarter earnings call that SpaceX would need approximately half a trillion dollars and six to eight years to build a terrestrial network capable of meaningfully competing with established wireless carriers. Schulman estimated that a competitive mobile network would require up to 80,000 cell towers linked by fiber optics and satellites.

While Schulman acknowledged that SpaceX generally executes its goals, he argued that satellite-based systems cannot compete with terrestrial networks in urban and suburban areas, where Verizon generates 98% of its revenue. These comments follow a decline in U.S. mobile carrier share prices after Starlink acquired mobile-friendly low-band spectrum.

AT&T CEO John Stankey dismissed the threat entirely, advising against over-rotating on the impact of a single carrier of low-band spectrum.