AST SpaceMobile and Vodafone Partnership

Shares of AST SpaceMobile, Inc. (NASDAQ: ASTS) surged 8% following the announcement of a long-term commercial agreement with Vodafone Group Plc (LSE: LON:VOD). This partnership, set to last until 2034, aims to deliver space-based cellular broadband connectivity directly to smartphones for both commercial and government applications.

The relationship between the two companies dates back to 2018, when Vodafone became a significant investor in AST SpaceMobile, contributing to several technological milestones, including:

• The first space-based voice call to an unmodified smartphone in April 2023.
• Achieving 4G download speeds above 10 Mbps in June 2023.
• Conducting the inaugural 5G voice call in September 2023.

As part of the agreement, Vodafone will integrate AST SpaceMobile's services into its home markets and provide connectivity solutions to other operators via its Partner Markets program. Additionally, Vodafone has ordered its first Block 1 BlueBird gateway, a vital component in creating AST SpaceMobile's global network infrastructure. This gateway will allow smartphones to connect directly to low Earth orbit satellites, which will relay data to Vodafone's terrestrial networks.

AST SpaceMobile's upcoming Block 2 BlueBird satellites are projected to greatly enhance network capabilities, offering up to 10 times the bandwidth capacity and supporting data transmission speeds up to 120 Mbps.

The strategic partnership has received additional backing from major players in the industry, including AT&T (NYSE:T), Verizon (NYSE:VZ), Google (NASDAQ:GOOGL), and Vodafone itself, along with new contracts with the United States Government. AST SpaceMobile currently has agreements with over 45 mobile network operators worldwide, reaching approximately 2.8 billion subscribers.

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