The "Big Three" U.S. carriers—AT&T, T-Mobile, and Verizon—have united to lobby the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to fight a new satellite-to-phone spectrum proposal primarily because they fear it will degrade their existing 5G terrestrial networks through signal interference, strip away their control over spectrum licensing, and fast-track a massive new market competitor in SpaceX's Starlink Mobile.
The FCC's proposal, scheduled for an October 29, 2026 vote, aims to open an additional 482 MHz of spectrum for Supplemental Coverage from Space (SCS), expanding eligible satellite bands from 5 to 13.
The specific reasons the wireless carriers are fiercely opposing the changes through their trade group, the CTIA, include:
- Severe 5G Network Interference
The carriers are demanding that the FCC remove the 2.5 GHz and 3.45 GHz frequencies from the proposal, which would take 290 MHz off the table.
• TDD Conflict: T-Mobile relies heavily on the 2.5 GHz band, and AT&T operates on the 3.45 GHz band. Both use Time-Division Duplexing (TDD), meaning their cell towers and consumer phones share the exact same radio bands to both send and receive data.
• Signal Degradation: The carriers argue that if a satellite flies overhead using these exact same workhorse 5G bands, it will cause severe technical and interference challenges, ultimately slowing down or disrupting service for over 300 million terrestrial wireless users.
- Loss of Spectrum Control and Rights
Under current FCC frameworks, satellite operators are required to lease spectrum from ground carriers, giving the cellular providers full veto power and control.
• Frequency Sharing: The FCC proposal wants to replace these rigid leasing frameworks with flexible agreements that allow satellite and ground operators to share frequencies.
• The Pushback: The carriers are fighting to preserve mandatory carrier consent, termination rights, and absolute control over who uses the spectrum they invested billions of dollars to license. They contend that cellular providers—not the FCC—should dictate if a satellite company can utilize their airwaves.
- Fending Off Starlink Mobile as a Direct Carrier Competitor
While the carriers support satellite-to-phone connectivity in theory (and have executed their own partnerships), the FCC’s sudden push directly clears the path for SpaceX to become an independent fourth major U.S. mobile carrier.
• Market Disruption: The FCC recently approved SpaceX’s acquisition of Tristar's AWS-3 spectrum and cleared 15,000 next-gen Starlink Mobile satellites capable of beaming 100x the bandwidth directly to ordinary smartphones.
• Massive Stakes: SpaceX is actively looking to build terrestrial infrastructure and secure massive blocks of spectrum to back up its satellites on the ground. Wall Street responded to the threat of a dominant, space-blended Starlink network by sending Verizon and AT&T stock tumbling. By locking down the 2.5 GHz and 3.45 GHz bands, the Big Three are trying to starve SpaceX of the massive spectrum depth it needs to fully compete with them.
Former FCC Chairman Ajit Pai, currently acting as CEO of the CTIA, has formally joined the carriers' push, meeting with current FCC Chairman Brendan Carr to urge the commission to drop the contested 5G bands from the satellite expansion draft entirely.
Would you like to know more about how SpaceX's current deal with T-Mobile differs from its new standalone carrier ambitions, or would you like details on the AT&T and Verizon partnership with AST SpaceMobile?