With the unexpected shutdown of the swarm network (90 days of service left) has there / will there be any commitment to SpaceX's "Direct to Cell" IOT Service?
Regards,
Bryce
Hi Brice,
We all knew it was coming, but unfortunately, it happened a lot earlier than expected. It's a huge loss, especially considering all the investments we made in this promising technology. According to the representatives of SpaceX, their "Direct to Cell" service will be compatible with the existing modems used in our ML-E417 and ML-A417 LTE Cat 1 data loggers. The ML-E417 supports the EMEA bands, while the ML-A417 covers the APAC bands. However, we ceased production of the latter due to limited demand in favor of the ML-417 with CAT-M. Once we can test the "Direct to Cell" service in Europe with the ML-E417 and get positive results, we might consider resuming production of the ML-A417.
Alternatively, we are also awaiting the commercial release of Telit modems supporting the NTN 3GPP standard.
So yes, we are committed to jumping on the "internet from space" train as soon as it becomes feasible.
Regards,
Marnix
Hi Brice,
In the coming weeks, we will begin producing a few prototypes with a modem compatible with SpaceX’s Direct-to-Cell service. Once finished, we will ship one to Paul for testing in Australia as soon as Optus enables the Direct-to-Cell Data service next year.
Regards,
Marnix
