SpaceX Plans to Acquire 800MHz Spectrum for $8 Billion

en.Wedoany.com Reported - On October 8, U.S.-based SpaceX signed a formal acquisition agreement with digital infrastructure investment firm Grain Management to acquire all of the latter's nationwide 800MHz low-band spectrum asset portfolio in the United States, with the transaction valued at approximately $8 billion according to media reports. The deal involves up to 14MHz of paired spectrum, which will be used for Starlink Mobile's satellite-to-phone direct connectivity and terrestrial wireless network construction. The transaction still requires approval from the U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and satisfaction of other customary closing conditions.

According to the network deployment plan published by SpaceX, the acquired 800MHz low-band resources will be used for mobile network coverage within the United States, operating alongside existing global 2GHz mid-band satellite communication resources. The company plans to build a hybrid network combining satellite-to-phone direct connectivity systems with terrestrial wireless communication facilities after obtaining final regulatory approval. The 2GHz band will handle higher-bandwidth data transmission tasks, while the 800MHz band will be used for network coverage inside buildings and in other signal-obstructed areas.

The spectrum assets sold by Grain Management previously came from U.S. telecommunications carrier T-Mobile. In July 2026, the U.S. Federal Communications Commission approved a spectrum license exchange between the two parties, involving T-Mobile transferring 800MHz spectrum to Grain, and Grain transferring 600MHz spectrum to T-Mobile along with a accompanying cash payment. Grain completed the acquisition of the relevant assets in August, and the new agreement signed with SpaceX further transfers these spectrum licenses to the satellite communications operator.

The U.S. Federal Communications Commission previously imposed terrestrial network construction obligations on the spectrum exchange between Grain and T-Mobile, and stipulated performance conditions related to satellite-to-phone direct device business cooperation. This SpaceX acquisition agreement still requires regulatory review of the spectrum license transfer. Grain Management has engaged BDT & MSD Partners as financial advisor, Milbank as legal advisor, and Latham & Watkins for regulatory legal affairs.

SpaceX recently also obtained authorization from the U.S. Federal Communications Commission for the deployment of a new generation of Starlink direct-to-phone satellites, involving up to 15,000 satellites. The new generation of satellites will use 2GHz spectrum to provide mobile communication services, and together with the terrestrial low-band resources proposed for acquisition in this transaction, will form the subsequent network deployment plan.