FCC clears Amazon's $11.5B Globalstar deal behind iPhone satellite SOS

The US Federal Communications Commission approved Amazon's purchase of satellite operator Globalstar on October 27. The deal is worth about $11.5 billion. It was announced in April, and this clears its main regulatory hurdle.

Globalstar is the network that lets iPhone 14 and later, plus Apple Watch Ultra 3, send SOS texts, messages and location where there is no cell signal. Apple has signed its own agreement with Amazon: those features keep working, and future ones will be built on Amazon Leo.

Amazon gets Globalstar's two dozen satellites, its ground infrastructure and internationally harmonized mobile satellite spectrum. Amazon Leo already has several hundred satellites in orbit and targets about 3,200 by 2029. From 2028 Amazon plans its own direct to device system for calls, texts and data without towers.

According to the FCC, Amazon is also buying Apple's stake in Globalstar, and Apple brought in about 63% of the operator's revenue. The deal is expected to close in 2027.

Verdict: Starlink is no longer the only company wiring phones to space, and its rival just walked in with every iPhone in its pocket.