Recently, U.S. Coast Guard and U.S. Navy operators discovered a succinct yet urgent message on the shore of a remote South Pacific island: "HELP." The four letters, spelled out using palm fronds, were placed by three fishermen lost at sea for more than a week. With no other means of communication, the seafarers resorted to a tactic more likely to be seen in the movie Castaway than in real life.
While the fishermen were thankfully rescued, the incident was a sobering reminder that no matter how connected the world is, it’s not connected nearly enough. Cellular connectivity is still non-existent across thousands of miles of land and sea, leaving millions of people without means of communication. In fact, only around 34% of the Earth’s landmass is covered by cellular signal.
Fortunately, we now have the opportunity to close these communication gaps. Narrowband Internet of Things (NB-IoT) Non-terrestrial Network (NTN) standards developed by the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) will make it easier to integrate satellite connectivity into smartphones, smartwatches, vehicles, and more. The expanded reach provided by the combination of cellular and satellite allows consumers to stay in touch even in areas where cellular networks cannot reach.
Let’s dig into these standards, what they mean for mobile network operators (MNOs), and how Low-Earth Orbit (LEO) satellite constellations provide fast, reliable, and trusted communications capabilities.
What are the 3GPP NB-IoT NTN standards?
Every chipset, device manufacturer, cellular operator, and satellite communications provider has its own technology or network. Due to their proprietary nature, traditionally it’s been difficult to integrate these elements.
The 3GPP standards address this problem. Every year, the 3GPP collects feedback from organizations on everything from power and antenna requirements to ways to optimize performance on NTNs and more. They use this information to create standards for deploying NB-IoT and NTNs together. Chipmakers and device manufacturers are then able to easily build devices capable of handling both cellular and satellite communications, thus broadening the communications and connectivity capabilities of smartphones, smartwatches, tablets, and other internet-enabled devices.
Consider a future in which all smartphones are able to provide a user with simple, immediate, and dependable SOS communication capabilities, even in the absence of a cellular network. Or an automobile that allows a person stranded on a desolate stretch of desert to reach out to a loved one to let them know they’re OK. Standards supporting NB-IoT NTN coverage allow manufacturers to bring these possibilities to the real world.
How do the standards benefit MNOs?
While NB-IoT NTN standards provide opportunities for chipmakers and device manufacturers to create more standardized hardware and increase sales, they hold just as much promise for MNOs. According to CTIA, U.S. wireless companies invested more than $364 billion in network improvements between 2010 and 2022, resulting in 98% national coverage across the United States. What about the other 2 percent, or terrestrial coverage gaps in the rest of the world?
Leveraging NTN standards alongside cellular networks will allow MNOs to fill those untapped areas with reliable and pervasive coverage. A customer in a remote environment will be able to send a text message via two-way or peer-to-peer messaging or issue an emergency SOS and share their location with confidence that the message will get through. Even better, by using satellite technology, MNOs can expand their coverage without having to strike agreements to share cellular spectrum or attempt to navigate regulatory spectrum approvals.
Expanded coverage gives MNOs powerful advantages. They’ll be able to tout truly global coverage and will provide customers with trusted communications solutions that are reliably available wherever they need them. This will increase existing customer loyalty and help MNOs build their domestic and international customer bases, particularly in areas they have not previously been able to support.
Why are LEO satellites key to achieving these goals?
Even with standards in place, achieving these objectives is not a fait accompli for MNOs. Their success in leveraging NB-IoT NTNs depends on the type of satellite network they choose. In this case, the right choice is a LEO constellation.
Geostationary (GEO) satellite networks use constellations that orbit about 22,000 miles away from the Earth, aligned with the equator and covering a wide range of territory. Still, they present problems when it comes to supporting reliable communication. First, the satellite’s distance from the planet results in high latency, which can make a big difference when someone is experiencing an emergency and needs real-time communication. Second, while GEO satellites cover huge distances, a single malfunction could wipe out communication capabilities for the entire coverage area, undermining efforts to provide reliable communications. Third, geostationary coverage is not truly global, leaving large swaths of the planet uncovered.
Conversely, LEO constellations orbit a few hundred miles above the Earth, reducing latency times for more immediate communication. Even though they use less power than GEO satellites, they provide stronger signals. LEO constellations operating in L-band are resilient in the face of bad weather and provide dependable connectivity. Each satellite covers a smaller area than GEOs, but their orbital paths are highly predictable, so if one goes out, another will be ready to quickly take its place.
LEO constellations with dedicated, global spectrum authorization provide the right combination of efficiency, coverage, and reliability, and provide customers with uninterrupted and dependable service in every environment.
The right combination of efficiency, coverage, and reliability
The 3GPP standards will undoubtedly expand the use of satellite technology as an essential communications tool for all consumer devices. They will also give MNOs a great opportunity to expand their customer base by hundreds of millions of people and increase upsells while retaining current customers.
But these benefits will only be possible if they build their communications infrastructures on the right type of satellite networks. Companies that make the wrong choice in satellite technology run the risk of poor service quality damaging their brand and reducing customer trust and loyalty. That’s a mistake no one can afford to make.
