Omnispace Merger Adds S-Band Spectrum to Fuel Connectivity Push
May 22, 2026
Lynk Global is ramping up its efforts in the satellite direct-to-device (D2D) space to serve key industries, winning a new U.S. regulatory testing license and a major merger deal with Omnispace. All of this represents a major advance for a company that has, until now, offered only sporadic messaging and alert services across a handful of small islands via five satellites in low Earth orbit.
A 3D Render of a Lynk Satellite Connecting to Mobile Devices Over Mongolia. Credit: Lynk
The U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has awarded Lynk a one-year license to experiment with satellite D2D links via 900 megahertz terrestrial spectrum that is already owned by Anterix, whose major utility customers include Xcel Energy and Oncor. The testing will be conducted over seven states, starting May 31, with seven satellites already in orbit that Lynk operates. The satellites will operate much like cell towers in space, sending signals over the Anterix spectrum to smartphones, routers, and other devices on the ground, the company executives said. Anterix’s regulatory head said the tests would give the company a clearer picture of what products and services might be developed down the road, which could create a new category of private, secure, resilient network solutions for critical infrastructure enterprises.
The utility sector partnership is part of a larger business approach. Lynk has over 50 mobile network operators as partners around the world, and has already integrated networks with more than 30, as they get ready for a full commercial launch. These operators are able to share their terrestrial spectrum with Lynk’s satellites, which enables the company to fill coverage gaps without building an independent frequency base. But it has its own constraints on capacity and global reach, which is why the planned merger with Omnispace is deemed so strategic. Omnispace has 60 megahertz of globally coordinated S-band spectrum to offer, which Lynk says will give it the ability to provide seamless voice, messaging and data services to mobile operators, consumers, commercial fleets, governments and utility sectors around the world. Combined, the company will have the right technology, spectrum and leadership to provide mobile connectivity wherever and whenever it is required, said Lynk CEO Ramu Potarazu.
The Omnispace merger has been in the making for some time. Omnispace had originally planned to launch a constellation of over 600 satellites with its S-band allocation, but those plans were put on hold, in part because of interference concerns with SpaceX’s D2D service in the United States, where overlapping frequencies caused regulatory issues. The vice president of strategy at Omnispace said the conflict would play out in the U.S. market only and that a pending FCC request could help resolve the issue by harmonizing the use of frequencies in the U.S. market with international S-band standards. Multi-orbit operator SES, headquartered in Luxembourg, will be a key strategic investor in the combined company. In recent weeks, the FCC approved the transaction, and Lynk is looking to wrap it up by the end of June. Its executives described a flexible satellite network based on a multi-orbit, multi-spectrum and multi-beam architecture, and the Omnispace merger would help to speed up the process significantly.
D2D is changing the face of the industry as a whole due to the competition for dedicated satellite spectrum. SpaceX is waiting for regulatory approval to buy S-band spectrum from geostationary broadband operator EchoStar, valued at more than $17 billion, which would significantly boost its D2D capacity. AST SpaceMobile, which has partnered with AT&T and Verizon in the U.S., is also looking for L-band spectrum from bankrupt operator Ligado Networks and global S-band frequencies, country by country, to provide broadband speeds up to 120 megabits per second from the sky. Lynk’s future lies with its Omnispace merger and the upcoming tests in the utility industry. The company could become a serious contender in the satellite connectivity market for mission-critical communications where “always-on” is a must-have, not a nice-to-have.
