FCC Accepts SpaceX's Application to Acquire 800 MHz Spectrum

en.Wedoany.com Reported - On November 10, the U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) accepted an application from Starlink Spectrum Holdings, a subsidiary of Space Exploration Technologies Corp. (SpaceX), to acquire Grain Management's nationwide 800 MHz spectrum assets, involving 546 paired spectrum licenses covering all 50 U.S. states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands, with coverage reaching approximately 100% of the total U.S. population. The acceptance of the application means the transaction has entered the public regulatory review phase.

The transaction involves two spectrum license companies held by Grain Management's NewLevel IV, namely Prism License Co. 1 and Prism License Co. 2. Under the acquisition agreement signed on October 8, Grain will transfer the equity interests in both companies to SpaceX's Starlink Spectrum Holdings, which will acquire control of the relevant licenses. The spectrum involved in the transaction lies in the 817–824 MHz and 862–869 MHz bands, providing up to a total of 14 MHz of paired spectrum across 173 economic areas and 3,224 counties in the United States.

The 800 MHz band is a low-band frequency whose wireless signals generally propagate over longer distances and exhibit better diffraction capability than higher frequency bands, and also offer advantages in penetrating buildings and other obstacle environments. SpaceX plans to integrate this spectrum into the Starlink mobile communications system, complementing its existing approximately 2 GHz mid-band satellite communications resources. Low-band resources would primarily provide wide-area coverage, with satellite communications and terrestrial mobile networks operating in coordination to expand the coverage of direct-to-cell satellite services and improve connectivity in certain indoor and terrestrial areas with weak signal. Actual communication performance will still depend on satellite transmit power, antenna performance, and link budget.

The transaction also involves existing spectrum use obligations. When the FCC previously approved Grain's acquisition of the relevant 800 MHz spectrum from U.S. telecommunications operator T-Mobile, it imposed phased build-out requirements for terrestrial network coverage and satellite direct-to-device services. If this transaction is approved, SpaceX will also assume the corresponding obligations. Under the existing regulatory arrangements, the relevant metrics involve satellite network performance assessments in 2029, 2031, and 2036; the terrestrial network plan involves coverage requirements in 2029 and 2034.

The FCC has opened a public comment period. Interested parties may submit comments or petitions to deny by December 1, 2026, with a reply comment deadline of December 8. SpaceX also separately filed an application on October 27 seeking to modify its Starlink mobile satellite system authorization to allow satellites to use the aforementioned 800 MHz band to provide supplemental coverage from space. That satellite use authorization application is still under review and constitutes a separate regulatory proceeding from this spectrum license control transfer.