The UK telecoms regulator has today published their annual 2024 Pricing Trends Report, which among other things confirms that the take-up of cheaper social broadband ISP and mobile tariffs for those on state benefits has jumped to 506,000 customers in June 2024 (up from 380,000 in Sept 2023). But that’s still just 9.6% of eligible households (e.g. those on Universal Credit).

Consumer broadband, phone and mobile services are often considered to be quite reasonably priced in the UK, but there are always those – often people in the most disadvantaged groups (low income, unemployed etc.) – who will struggle with paying their bills. This is being fuelled further by the ongoing cost-of-living crisis, which has pushed more people into financial difficulty.

According to Ofcom’s latest data, the proportion of UK households reporting difficulty with affording their fixed broadband services is currently 8% (1.9 million), while 6% (1.6 million) said the same about their mobile phone service (a decrease compared to 9% in October 2023). The households that were most likely to have affordability issues were younger households (adults aged between 18 and 24), those in receipt of benefits, those with children, and those with a resident with an impacting/limiting condition.

The previous UK Government and Ofcom responded to this by encouraging more mobile and broadband providers to introduce and promote low-cost Social Tariffs. The regulator suggests that, on average, these could save an eligible household around £200 per year and cost between £12 and £23 a month (less than comparable commercial products). A fair number of providers now offer such plans, but awareness remains an issue, albeit a shrinking one.

The latest report states that 69% of eligible households continue to be unaware that such tariffs exist. In terms of take-up, BT has offered such a tariff for the longest and has the largest share of broadband customers on one. TalkTalk is still the only major broadband ISP NOT to offer a social tariff.

The 69-page report also includes a plenty of other interesting highlights, and we’ve summarised a few of the key findings below.

Ofcom’s Natalie Black CBE (Group Director, Networks and Telecoms) said:

“Today’s report shows that mobile and broadband services in the UK remain competitively priced and generally compare favourably to other countries. With significant savings to be had, especially for the fastest packages, it’s important as ever for customers to shop around. It’s also encouraging to see more people taking advantage of the wider range of social tariffs now available, but with many more eligible customers unaware, there’s still a job for communications providers to do to further promote this vital support.” 

Details from Ofcom’s 2024 Pricing Trends Report

General:

➤ Falling inflation resulted in lower annual price rises than last year for in-contract customers. Most of the UK’s largest telecoms providers apply annual price rises in their contracts, linked to inflation, plus an additional percentage (typically 3.9%). Falling inflation resulted in smaller increases in 2024 than in 2023. In January 2025, new rules will come into effect that require providers to set out price rises clearly in pounds and pence and prohibit inflation-linked or percentage-based price rise terms in new contracts. This means that people will know when they sign up for a service what they will pay during the minimum contractual period.

➤ Some providers have already announced the price increases that they will implement from 2025, and have started to sign customers up to deals which are subject to fixed annual in-contract price rises. In 2025 these will increase monthly prices by up to £1.80 per month for mobile services and up to £3.50 for fixed broadband.

➤ Most average fixed broadband and landline dual-play bundle prices have fallen. In contrast to 2023, most new customer prices for dual-play fixed broadband bundles have been flat, or have fallen in real terms in 2024. Ultrafast list and promoted prices have fallen most, down by 9% and 8% in real terms year on year, while superfast list and promoted prices dropped by 7% and 3% respectively.

➤ Average prices for fixed broadband, landline and TV triple-play bundles have mostly increased year on year. Superfast list and promoted prices increased by 1% and 4% respectively in real terms; for ultrafast bundles, the average list price was up 3% while the average new-customer-promoted price fell by 3%. Despite these increases, triple-play fixed broadband, landline, and pay-TV bundles have fallen considerably since September 2019, ranging from 25% for superfast promoted prices to 48% for ultrafast promoted prices.

Bundles and broadband:

➤ Bundling services continues to offer savings for people who take fixed broadband. Analysis of the prices of ‘baskets’ of communications services shows that those baskets with a fixed broadband connection and landline service were between 24% and 45% cheaper when purchased as part of a bundle, rather than on a standalone basis.

➤ Customers who are out-of-contract typically pay more than those who are in contract. The promoted prices available to new customers and those re-contracting are lower than the ‘list’ prices that out of contract customers are likely to pay. Data collected from operators shows that 36% of dual-play fixed broadband and landline customers and 32% of triple-play fixed broadband, landline and pay-TV customers were out of contract at the end of June 2024, and their bills were 18% and 16% higher respectively than customers who were in contract.

➤ More people are benefiting from the savings and protections offered by social tariffs. Based on Ofcom research, we estimate that around 1.9 million UK households found it difficult to afford their fixed broadband service in October 2024. Take-up of fixed and mobile social tariffs, which offer lower-priced services to those on qualifying benefits, grew by 125,000 (33%) to 506,000 in the nine months to June 2024. However, awareness and take-up remain a challenge: nearly seven in ten (69%) of eligible households were unaware of social tariffs in October 2024, and while take-up is improving, it remains low as a proportion of eligible households (10%).

➤ Standalone fixed broadband offers savings for people who do not need a landline service. The average list price for standalone fixed broadband was 12% cheaper than the average list price of dual-play fixed broadband and landline packages, while the average promoted price for standalone fixed broadband was 14% cheaper than when bundled with a landline.

➤ UK broadband prices compare well internationally. The UK had the joint-lowest fixed broadband prices (with Italy) among the six countries included in our comparisons in 2024, and was cheaper than France, Germany, Spain, and the US. However, while the price of lower-bandwidth UK broadband services compared well internationally, UK prices for ultrafast broadband products (with an advertised speed of 300 Mbit/s or higher) were among the most expensive.

➤ Ultrafast broadband can be cheaper from smaller providers. Prices offered by the UK’s independent full-fibre network providers are frequently lower than those offered by established fixed broadband providers. Smaller full-fibre providers were offering 900 Mbit/s to 1 Gbit/s broadband services with promoted prices starting at £26 per month in October 2024, compared to £39 per month for the cheapest similar service taken from a larger provider.

➤ Average monthly spend is down for standalone and quad-play products, but up for dual- and triple-play bundles. In real terms, average monthly spend on standalone fixed broadband fell by 5%, year on year, while the decrease for quad-play bundles was larger, at 19%. Real-terms spend on dual- and triple-play bundles both increased by 8% over the same period.

Landline:

➤ Standalone landline prices increased significantly in the year to July 2024. Analysis of the new customer prices of four standalone landline connections, with varying usage levels, indicates an average price increase of 15% year on year. Few providers still offer standalone landlines, and a key driver of the increases was the withdrawal of some of BT’s call bundles.

Mobile:

➤ Mobile prices have fallen in real terms. The average price of a basket of mobile services reflecting average use in 2024 was 5% lower in real terms than one based on average use and prices in 2023. Overall, the basket price in 2024 was 23% lower than the price of a basket of mobile services based on prices and use in 2019 in real terms, and 5% lower in nominal terms, despite average data use having almost trebled over this period. Of the six countries we compared, the UK had the second-cheapest standalone mobile prices (higher than France but lower than Germany, Italy, Spain, and the US).

➤ Prices for SIM-only mobile services have fallen since September 2023. The average monthly promoted prices for SIM-only tariffs fell year on year in real terms for all the data allowance groups that we looked at, ranging from a 1% drop for services with 1 GB or less of inclusive data and those with >100 GB, to an 11% fall for tariffs offering between 1 GB and 10 GB of data.

➤ Tariffs that include airtime and a handset typically cost more than buying a handset and SIM-only contract separately. Pay-monthly mobile tariffs that include airtime and a handset (either under separate contracts or a single combined contract) accounted for 35% of all mobile subscriptions in June 2024. Our analysis shows that, on average, it was about 25% cheaper to buy a SIM-only plan and use it with a separately acquired handset, and across the mobile connections that we looked at, there was a £200 average saving over a typical 24-month contract. Many mobile providers only offer separate device and service mobile contracts and have stopped offering combined handset and airtime contracts.

➤ Pre-pay users pay a premium for 5G mobile services. Most pre-pay services are hybrid services which provide inclusive calls, texts and data that expire after a month. The availability of cheap hybrid tariffs resulted in pre-pay being cheaper for the two ‘baskets’ with the lowest data-use connections included in our analysis, while pay-monthly was cheaper for the four higher-use profiles. For three of these higher-use connections, this was because the baskets required 5G connectivity, which (unlike with pay-monthly contracts) commands a price premium on pre-pay.

Pay-TV and subscription video-on-demand (SVoD):

➤ Ad-supported tiers are now widespread within the SVoD market. However, some ad-free SVoD services have been subject to above-inflation price increases. Apple TV+ and Netflix (for its Premium and now discontinued Basic plan), were the only major UK SVoD services to increase their prices in the year to September 2024. However, Disney+ introduced an above-inflation price increase for both its ad-free plans in October 2024.

Finally, a quick reminder. We know social tariffs can be a divisive topic for some, but that is not an excuse to abuse the comment system in order to post offensive remarks toward those who take state benefits. Such posts are against our rules and will be removed.

The Swansea Bay City Region project has announced that it’s successfully completed 50% of its Full Fibre Infrastructure Build project with BT. This forms part of the related ‘Swansea Bay City Deal’s Digital Infrastructure Programme’ and is helping to upgrade key public sector sites with “future proofed” broadband connectivity.

Just to recap. The UK and Welsh Governments gave their approval for a £55m digital infrastructure investment under the £1.3bn Swansea Bay City Region project back in 2021 (here), which among other things aimed to expand full fibre and 5G mobile connectivity to benefit residents and businesses across Carmarthenshire, Neath Port Talbot, Pembrokeshire and Swansea. Some of this investment comes from the Local Broadband Fund (LBF) for Wales.

The full fibre build, delivered by BT via the Welsh Government funded Public Sector Broadband Aggregation (PSBA), aims to provide improved broadband provision to public sector sites across the region via a secure Wide Area Network (WAN) – offering a fully managed service that enhances business-critical connectivity, and allows public sector organisations to benefit from cost-effective and resilient network services.

This all reflects a £2m joint investment, £1.05m of which has been secured by the Digital Infrastructure Programme from the Welsh Government’s LBF.

Simon Davies, Carmarthenshire County Council, said:

“Reaching this 50% milestone is a fantastic achievement and one that will greatly improve the services of these public sector sites.

Upgrading these locations to having gigabit-capable digital infrastructure is essential for their future prosperity. Our regional public sector partners need to move forwards with their use of digital technology to ensure that the best experiences can be offered and this project is a valuable part of achieving that.”

Rob Stewart, Chair of the Swansea Bay City Deal Joint Committee, said:

“Keeping up with the increasing demand for digital services across the public sector is critical in ensuring the best possible experiences for our residents and businesses, and in order to do this, we must invest in the infrastructure required to ensure our services are futureproofed for the next 20 years. Achieving the 50% mark is a key milestone for this project and has allowed several sites to already reap the benefits of full fibre. We look forward to continuing to work closely with BT and the PSBA on the full completion of this project in supporting the transformation of public service delivery”.

The aim of the project is to drive full fibre broadband to 69 publicly owned sites in need of improved infrastructure. Additionally, approximately 425 residential and business premises will benefit from improved broadband as a result, and the project is expected to stimulate further commercial investment, accelerating the rollout of full fibre networks across the region.

Sites completed in this phase include strategic locations that are vital to public service delivery. These sites have been prioritised to maximise the impact on the community and ensure the most efficient use of resources.

Internet benchmarking firm Opensignal has used their crowdsource data, which is collected via users of their benchmarking apps and services, to reveal a bit more information about how the recent 3G mobile switch-off on EE (BT), Three UK (ongoing) and Vodafone has impacted the availability of their remaining 2G, 4G and 5G based mobile / broadband services.

Just to recap. Both EE (BT) and Vodafone completed their shutdown of older 3G services in February 2024 (here and here), while Three UK are aiming to complete their own process by the end of this year (here). By comparison, O2 (Virgin Media) are planning to both start and complete this process by the end of 2025 (here).

Mobile operators have generally been compensating for the 3G switch-off in some areas by introducing upgrades to newer 4G and 5G services (example). The removal of 3G is also expected to significantly reduce each operator’s energy usage and free up some radio spectrum to be re-farmed for use by modern services, which could boost their network performance and coverage.

In fact, we’ve already seen some data from Streetwave, which claims to have identified improvements in mobile broadband performance after 3G was switched off by Vodafone and Three UK in certain areas (here and here). But it’s still early days, and the results for network coverage seem to be a bit more variable.

The latest data from Opensignal provides some extra context for this change, albeit with a focus more on the change in network availability and the time that UK users now spend on 2G, 3G, 4G and 5G. For example, Vodafone users were found to have seen a “significant dip in Availability” (i.e. the percentage of time users spend with a mobile broadband connection — either 3G, 4G or 5G) and an “increase in Time on 2G” after the switch-off, which will need to change before 2G reaches its own shutdown (i.e. 4G and 5G will then become the primary methods).

However, the data also shows that Vodafone “turned off 3G relatively abruptly” compared to Three UK, and began the process with a much higher Time on 3G than EE. But take note that Three UK never had its own 2G network, and EE had the advantage of starting from a much better position than Vodafone in terms of time on 3G.

The report also notes that the European region is at the forefront of this transition with over half (52.6%) of global 2G and 3G switch-offs either completed, planned, or in progress. On average, European smartphone users were found to spend 5.5% of their time on 2G or 3G (3.9% for just 3G), which drops to 4.2% for the UK (Moldova tops the table with 18.9%, while Norway sits at the bottom with just 0.8%).

In the race to move away from legacy mobile technologies, the Nordic countries are currently in the lead.

The Communications Ombudsman, which is one of Ofcom’s two approved Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) providers for UK consumers of broadband ISPs, mobile and landline phone providers, has released its complaints data Q3 2024 and reported a 29% increase compared to the same period in 2023.

The regulator requires that all telecoms providers – those offering services to consumers and small businesses – must be members of an approved ADR scheme. The schemes are free for consumers to access and designed to supplement (not replace) your provider’s own internal complaint procedure(s), although ISPs often have to pay sizeable costs regardless of whether they win or lose a case.

The ADR process is usually seen as a last line of defence for consumers and thus such schemes are generally only used after a dispute has gone unresolved for 8 weeks, or earlier with the agreement of their provider (i.e. the “Deadlock Letter” stage). See our ISP Complaints and Advice section for more information.

The new data reveals that, between July and September 2024 (Q3), a total of 7,969 cases were accepted by the Communications Ombudsman across several categories of complaint for billing, service quality, customer service, contract issues and equipment (e.g. routers, smartphones etc.). Customer service saw the largest climb in complaints, with a 77% rise compared to the same period in 2023. The main driver for the overall increase stemmed from “issues with the mobile phone sector“.

The five most common complaint types

Andy Eadle, Business Unit Director at the Communications Ombudsman, said:

“The Q3 complaints figures for 2024 have seen an increase across all dispute areas apart from equipment, matching the trends from the first half of 2024 against 2023. Broadband and mobile services are clearly crucial for millions of consumers who are highly conscious of the service they are getting from their providers.

The biggest change in figures for Q3 being customer service complaints shows the need to build greater trust between consumers and providers, and we are here to ensure disputes are resolved independently and impartially.”

Sadly, the Communications Ombudsman still doesn’t include a breakdown of the data by provider, which would have been useful to know as it can help to reflect issues that an ISP may be commonly struggling to resolve with their customers.

Broadband and telecoms giant BT Group has today highlighted how they’re using AI (Artificial Intelligence) based systems to “significantly” enhance the customer experience and streamline support processes across the Group. For example, EE’s (mobile) new virtual assistant, Aimee, now handles up to 60,000 customer conversations per week.

The group’s adoption of “advanced AI and generative AI technologies” is being conducted in collaboration with Sprinklr, which has supplied BT with their unified AI-Powered customer experience management platform. But Sprinklr’s capabilities will be re-used across the Group, not just for EE.

The platform is designed to draw on BT’s data to provide a more personalised, accurate response. For example, the customer contact platform, which powers EE’s virtual assistant Aimee, also provides the messaging capability for real-time online chat with customers.

However, consumer sentiment toward the use of AI chatbots tends to be quite mixed, with many viewing it as being more of a negative and just a way of reducing the number of actual humans that are available to provide support over the longer term. On the other hand, if systems like this do end up making it quicker and easier for customers to get their issues resolved, then that will be a positive change.

According to EE’s data, the automation success rates on several types of customer journey are now approaching 50%, freeing time for human staff to focus on more complex issues. Aimee’s use has risen 51% year-on-year, which BT says demonstrates “customer enthusiasm for the channel as its capabilities continue to be improved“, although it’s unclear how much of a choice end-users are getting in this context.

Harry Singh, MD of Consumer Digital at BT Group, said:

“The collaboration with Sprinklr marks a significant step forward in BT Group’s commitment to using cutting-edge technology to deliver exceptional customer experiences. With our customer contact platform, we have unlocked powerful AI-enhanced capabilities for our customer service, boosting satisfaction and creating exciting new opportunities for customer experience.”

Looking ahead, BT Group plans to expand its use of generative AI to further improve customer support. Upcoming features are expected to include AI-driven summaries of customer interactions and real-time support and guidance. With this, Aimee will be able to act as a virtual AI assistant for BT’s guides, helping to “improve efficiency, effectiveness, colleague and customer experience“.

BT has however had to implement ethical guardrails to ensure “robust data privacy and security measures“, which also helps to safeguard against “attempts to get the AI to misbehave” (we can’t image anybody ever doing that, ehumm..). The operator notes that its AI capabilities are hosted on a private cloud instance, ensuring compliance with data and privacy regulations, and data policies are set by BT Group’s internal data management platform, Data Fabric (i.e. BT maintains control over its own data).

Prices aren’t the only thing changing at Openreach (BT) today. The national UK network operator has also revealed that it will be withdrawing some of the “legacy” speed tiers on their Fibre-to-the-Cabinet (FTTC) and Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP + FTTP on Demand) based broadband products for ISPs and their customers.

The public briefing summary on this doesn’t provide any useful information, except to confirm that they’re today notifying all Communication Providers (CP) about “legacy speed tiers being withdrawn from new supply” (here). But with a bit of cross-referencing from other documents, we were able to confirm the FTTP tiers that are due to be withdrawn.

For example, Openreach will be withdrawing both their 220Mbps / 20Mbps (download / upload) and 330Mbps / 30Mbps tiers, which isn’t surprising as both now have a comparably priced option with faster 30Mbps and 50Mbps upload speeds, respectively. The FTTP on Demand (FoD / FTTPoD) product also sees the same change, albeit excluding 220/20Mbps because it didn’t offer that in the first place.

The briefing also mentions FTTC in its title but, at the time of writing, we haven’t been able to find any new withdrawal notices on their related speed tiers and are currently attempting to clarify what changes are actually being made to those tiers.

Openreach does occasionally withdraw legacy tiers, usually due to a lack of demand by CPs (inc. end-customers) or just to help simplify their product portfolio – often a combination of both. Existing customers on the withdrawn tiers will not be impacted, as the change only impacts new service supplies.

News

Here’s a look at the five biggest stories over the last week from our sister publication, Broadband Communities

A partnership between T-Mobile and Starlink can move ahead with providing supplemental cell service from space following approval from the FCC, and the industry applauds the latest digital equity grant approvals and passage of the ACCESS Rural America Act.  

T-Mobile and Starlink score a win with the FCC
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has approved an application from SpaceX that will allow Starlink and T-Mobile the ability to provide supplemental cell service from space. 

NTIA announces another string of digital equity grant approvals
Federal authorities have approved a string of State Digital Equity Capacity Grant Program applications, following up a busy November for the NTIA. 

Industry applauds Senate approval of ACCESS Rural America Act
Telecommunications industry leaders are applauding the passage of the ACCESS Rural America Act in the U.S. Senate. 

Which states are excelling and falling short on telehealth access?
Here’s where some state plans are excelling, and others are falling short. 

How AI can optimize network construction
Find out how AI is changing the game and addressing some of the challenges facing network construction, like human error and a labor shortage. 

 Join us at next year’s Connected America, 11-12 March in Dallas, Texas. Get discounted tickets here!

News

The deal comes with a price tag of $6.5 billion

Having been in discussions since May this year, Indonesia’s third- and fourth-largest telcos, XL Axiata and Smartfren, have finally agreed to merge their operations.

The deal, valued at around $6.5 billion, will see both parties take a 34.8% stake in the merged entity, with the remaining 30.4% stake being traded publicly.

Axiata will receive roughly $400 million as part of the deal.

The new company will be called PT XLSmart Telecom Sejahtera Tbk, or XL Smart for short, and will command a market share of roughly 27%, based on figures from September.

“We are excited to bring our expertise to XLSmart, combining two complementary and solid businesses to form a strong telecommunications operator uniquely positioned to meet the evolving needs of customers across all key segments. XLSmart will be a powerful platform to deliver enhanced connectivity, foster digital inclusion, and bridge the digital divide for communities across the country. XLSmart’s priorities will be on ensuring a stable market environment, maximising merger synergies and driving profitable growth,” said Vivek Sood, Group Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director of Axiata.

“We are confident that XLSmart will be well-positioned to thrive in Indonesia’s dynamic digital economy. Ultimately, we aim to unlock lasting value and benefits for all our stakeholders, including shareholders, customers, employees, and Indonesia as a whole,” he added.

Assuming typical regulatory clearances, the deal is expected to close in the first half of next year.

Keep up to date with the latest international telecoms news by subscribing to the Total Telecom daily newsletter 

Also in the news:
IBM and Samsung poised to win £900m Emergency Services Network contract over BT
IoH and Nokia team up for Indonesian 4G and 5G expansion
Cubic Telecom and Skylo partner for satellite capabilities for vehicles

Network access provider Openreach (BT) has today started to unveil their usual round of annual (2024) price increases across their wholesale broadband and Ethernet products for UK ISPs, which touches on everything from full fibre (FTTP) lines to hybrid fibre (FTTC / SOGEA), Cablelinks and Ethernet, among other products.

Ofcom’s regulatory rules (example) currently allow Openreach to increase prices across their various products, usually by the CPI level of inflation (currently 2.3%), although this may differ between products due to various factors (discounts etc.) and there could also be some decreases. But increases mean that ISPs on the same network will need to pay more for the services they sell, which often ends up being passed on to consumers at the retail level.

The price changes are far too numerous to easily summarise as they occur across masses of different products, but you can find more details by following the links on their Pricing Page, although at the time of writing they haven’t yet confirmed all of their Ethernet related changes (sometimes these follow a little later).

Just to give a few examples, the standard connection (one-off) charge on FTTP broadband lines is going up from £120.05 +vat to £122.84, while the rental for their 100Mbps (30Mbps upload) speed tier increases from £253.44 to £259.20 per year and their 1.8Gbps (120Mbps) tier goes from £500.88 to £512.40. The discounts under their Equinox 1/2 special offers will often also be impacted.

The annual rental price of their 40Mbps (10Mbps upload) hybrid fibre FTTC product will similarly increase from £73.12 to £74.82 and PCP Only (self-installations) of that same product will go from £57.11 (one-off) to £58.43. The connection fee for their 1Gbps Cablelink (capacity supply) also rises from £635.29 to £649.91, while 10Gbps Cablelinks go from £1,270.58 to £1,299.82. You get the idea.

News 

The agreement will allow Vodafone to offer space-based cellular broadband in both its home and partner markets 

AST SpaceMobile has entered into a long-term commercial agreement with Vodafone to provide global broadband access in underserved areas, enabling users to access broadband services directly through their phones. 

Under the agreement, Vodafone will incorporate AST SpaceMobile’s space-based cellular broadband services into its home markets and offer these capabilities to other operators through its ‘Partner Markets’ program.    

Vodafone has been a key investor and technology partner for AST SpaceMobile since 2018, contributing to several technological breakthroughs, including the first space-based voice call using an unmodified smartphone in April 2023. Additional successful trials included achieving 4G download speeds exceeding 10 Mbps from space in June 2023 and 5G voice call from space in September 2023 

AST SpaceMobile also reached download speeds of over 20 Mbps in later tests. 

Vodafone’s first order for the BlueBird gateway is a key step in AST SpaceMobile’s network rollout. The gateway will connect AST SpaceMobile’s satellites to Vodafone’s existing network, providing broadband access to users outside of traditional coverage areas. 

AST SpaceMobile currently has five of its first generation of BlueBird satellites in low Earth orbit, Thess satellites currently provide coverage across the US and in ‘select global markets’The next-generation BlueBird satellites – 17 of which are currently being built – will have larger antennas, providing much higher capacity and speeds. These new satellites are expected to reach data speeds of up to 120 Mbps, supporting services like voice, data, and video. 

AST SpaceMobile’s growth in 2024 has been supported by investments from AT&T, Verizon, Google, and Vodafone, as well as new contracts with the US government. The company now has agreements with over 45 mobile operators worldwide, reaching about 2.8 billion subscribers. Key partners include AT&T, Verizon, Rakuten Mobile, Orange, and MTN. 

Major investors like American Tower, Cisneros Group, and Bell Canada also support AST SpaceMobile. 

Join us at next year’s Connected America, 11-12 March in Dallas, Texas. Get discounted tickets here! 

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