Gold rush eyed for LEO satellite services

Satellite operator Thaicom and state agency National Telecom (NT) plan to utilise their global partners’ low-Earth orbit (LEO) satellites to become substantial sources of revenue.

Thaicom launched the Thaicom-Globalstar satellite gateway in Thailand in 2023 to provide LEO satellite services and solutions.

This development represented the country’s first adoption of LEO satellites to provide various solutions in Thailand and the region, such as security and Internet of Things (IoT) solutions that benefit several industries, including tourism, maritime, nature conservation and national defence.

Globalstar is a global LEO satellite operator and a leading provider of satellite IoT solutions and mobile satellite services.

Patompob Suwansiri, chief executive of Thaicom, said the company is the exclusive distributor of Globalstar’s services in Thailand.

“The deal with Globalstar forms part of our business development roadmap as the LEO satellite business is one aspect of Thaicom’s business diversification,” he said.

The LEO satellite service also complements Thaicom’s existing satellite portfolio, said Mr Patompob.

LEO satellite-based IoT solutions enable businesses to streamline operations, providing safety and communication, and enable assets to be monitored remotely via Thaicom’s satellite network.

More than 20 vessels in the maritime sector are using digital solutions provided by Thaicom through the Globalstar LEO satellite partnership, he said.

EXPANSION OF OPPORTUNITIES

Globalstar is expanding its partnership with Thaicom by deploying more than 40 SmartOne Solar satellite IoT transmitters to enhance its capability for real-time vessel tracking for merchant and offshore ships at sea.

Mr Patompob said the move benefits Thaicom as the exclusive partnership will be able to offer services with greater capabilities in the future.

Thaicom also partners with Eutelsat OneWeb for the provision of LEO broadband internet connectivity in Australia and New Zealand.

He said Thaicom is in talks with several LEO satellite operators on potential long-term business opportunities.

Thaicom’s geostationary satellite business accounts for 95% of the company’s revenue, while its space tech business contributes 5%.

The space tech business comprises three core services: LEO satellite service, a carbon credit management platform, and a software-defined satellite service.

Mr Patompob said the company expects the geosatellite business to contribute around 70% of total revenue over the next three years, with 30% from space tech services.

The National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC) recently approved NT providing the country’s first local satellite broadband internet service using an LEO satellite.

NT rolled out the local service this month under its partnership with Eutelsat OneWeb’s LEO satellite operator.

NT president Col Sanpachai Huvanandana said NT targets revenue of US$10 million (roughly 325 million baht) from the service by 2030, excluding the infrastructure rental fee of 200 million baht a year NT receives from Eutelsat OneWeb.

The approval follows an NBTC resolution in March of this year to allow NT to provide the broadband service for the regional market, excluding Thailand.

NT provides the LEO broadband service via its gateway in Ubon Ratchathani province. The gateway is expected to support more than 50,000 users in Southeast Asia in the first year of operation.

Eutelsat OneWeb is part of the Eutelsat Group, a global leader in satellite communications.

“The satellite services, including the LEO broadband service, will be a significant driver of NT’s revenue in the future,” said Col Sanpachai.

SPENDING GROWTH

End-user spending on LEO satellite communications services is expected to reach $14.8 billion globally in 2026, rising 24.5% from 2025, according to IT research house Gartner Inc.

According to Khurram Shahzad, senior director analyst at Gartner, new consumer and business use cases are emerging, driving communications service providers to expand the market. This is enabling LEO satellites to become a mainstream enterprise broadband technology.

LEO satellites orbit closer to the Earth than traditional satellite technology, providing faster connections and lower latency. This allows them to deliver high-speed broadband and complement traditional terrestrial networks.

The market is entering a rapid expansion phase, with more than 20 LEO satellite service providers and in excess of 40,000 satellites expected over the next few years, noted Gartner.

As use cases continue to grow, companies and consumers can expect consistent internet access and IoT sensing anywhere, without being limited by location, Mr Shahzad said.

The largest growth in LEO satellite communications services in 2026 will come from businesses and consumers in remote areas with no other connectivity options, with spending expected to increase 40.2% and 36.4% respectively, according to Gartner.

Other growth segments include LEO services for IoT connectivity (32%), maritime and aviation (13.8%) and network resilience improvement (7.7%), said the researcher.

EMERGING USE CASES

Emerging use cases for LEO satellite communications services can be categorised into four distinct areas.

The first is fixed and mobile broadband services, which recorded the most significant early use of LEO satellite services, especially for remote sites and to augment existing broadband connections.

These services support connectivity in areas with no broadband service, temporary locations such as construction sites, or on ships and aircraft.

They are also used for communication during emergency responses, or to improve resilience as fallback or back-up connectivity to traditional broadband.

For example, LEO-connected drones are used in Australia to deliver 4G/5G mobile connectivity during natural disasters, while some American airlines are starting to offer free high-speed WiFi to passengers using LEO satellite communications services.

The second area concerns global IoT connectivity. LEO IoT satellites complement or even replace traditional IoT networks for applications requiring global coverage, with limited bandwidth and latency requirements.

They can be used for global asset tracking, agriculture, oil and gas, natural resources, transport and logistics, military sensing and security monitoring. Global IoT connectivity is being deployed for land, sea and air using LEO satellites.

In China, an automaker launched 20 LEO satellites to improve navigation for autonomous vehicles and is planning to eventually have a constellation of 240 satellites.

The third area is for supplementing mobile broadband services, providing seamless coverage and enhancing the user experience through direct-to-device (D2D) connections and integration with 5G non-terrestrial networks.

For example, a New Zealand communication service provider launched a D2D LEO satellite service that allows customers to send and receive texts in the 40% of the country that is not covered by mobile towers.

The final area concerns infrastructure backhaul. Both communication service providers and enterprises with geographically dispersed operations can leverage LEO satellites for reliable and high-bandwidth connectivity, supporting critical applications, data transfer and communication needs independent of traditional terrestrial limitations.

For example, LEO satellites can provide the necessary backhaul for the operations of government agencies and defence organisations, which often require secure and reliable communication links in remote or hostile environments.

“Despite these expanding use cases, the industry remains nascent with various limitations, including regulatory barriers in some countries and capacity constraints in certain areas,” said Mr Shahzad.

LEO services can also encounter roaming restrictions, lack interoperability and are not certified for all mission-critical maritime needs.

Service providers should assess strategies on a use case basis, he said.

Source – Bangkok News