SpaceX announced Thursday an agreement to buy a nationwide portfolio of up to 14 MHz of paired spectrum in the 800 MHz band from Grain Management, subject to FCC approval, with no purchase price disclosed. The company said the spectrum fills a key technical gap paving the way for Starlink Mobile “to become a major mobile carrier in the US,” combining satellite and ground-based coverage once towers are deployed, in direct competition with AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile. The carriers’ shares tumbled in extended trading on the news while SpaceX rose about 3 percent after hours, per CNBC, and Elon Musk called the deal a “very big deal” on X.
SpaceX buys spectrum in push to become major mobile carrier
SpaceX agreed to buy a nationwide low-band spectrum portfolio from Grain Management, saying it paves the way for Starlink Mobile to become a major US carrier competing directly with AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile.
Why it matters: The deal, pending FCC approval, would put SpaceX in direct competition with the incumbent carriers on their own turf, a day after the FCC moved to auction more satellite-to-phone spectrum.
Data as of CNBC article published October 8, 2026, 4:43pm EDT by Lora Kolodny, opened and read in full. Single-sourced: purchase price not disclosed; exact carrier share moves not given.