SpaceX has secured key regulatory approval to expand Starlink’s direct-to-device service. It also opened a path to use its own spectrum without signing separate leasing deals with existing mobile carriers.

Business Insider reported on Oct. 7 that the U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) approved SpaceX to deploy and operate 15,000 Starlink satellites to provide direct-to-device service. The FCC also waived a rule requiring a spectrum lease agreement with one or more terrestrial wireless carriers. This allows SpaceX to use its own spectrum for the service.

The decision enables SpaceX to expand Starlink’s push into the wireless market while reducing reliance on existing mobile carrier infrastructure. In its approval order, the FCC said SpaceX’s satellite deployment would strengthen competition and give consumers more choice in more areas, expanding access to modern communications services.

The move also draws attention to competitive dynamics between SpaceX and major U.S. mobile carriers such as Verizon, AT&T and T-Mobile. Existing carriers, however, are not yet rating the competitiveness of satellite services highly.

Verizon CEO Dan Schulman (댄 슐먼) said at a Goldman Sachs conference last month that the impact of low-Earth orbit (LEO) satellite operators, including Starlink, on the company’s broadband growth was "not noticeable at all." Schulman added that he does not see satellite services as a "meaningful competitor" in the medium term or the long term.

The FCC approval is drawing attention because it gives Starlink a regulatory basis to expand satellite-based connectivity beyond a complement to existing mobile carriers and into an independent wireless service. How quickly SpaceX moves ahead with satellite deployment and service expansion, and how existing mobile carriers respond, are expected to be key variables in the U.S. wireless market.