Startup Lynk hopes to provide ten-cent text messaging services from its satellites by acting as a space-based roaming partner for terrestrial mobile network operators.
Startup Lynk expects to begin offering commercial services as early as next year, fully one year earlier than its rival SpaceMobile.
Of course, being the first to market is not necessarily the primary indicator of ultimate success. Further, one company s version of commercial-level services may not be the same as another.
Nonetheless, the fact that Lynk is promising availability in 2022 is noteworthy considering SpaceMobile has been dominating discussions about cellular service from space for the past year.
AST & Science s SpaceMobile burst onto the scene early last year with the announcement of a $110 million Series B round of funding from the likes of Rakuten, Vodafone and American Tower. SpaceMobile s profile rose several months later when AT&T said it was considering a deal with the company. And at the end of 2020, SpaceMobile confirmed it reached a binding memorandum of understanding with AT&T alongside plans to go public through a special purpose acquisition while ra