Opensignal’s Satellite Map tracks the rise of direct-to-device service from Starlink and others.
Satellite connectivity for phones can work almost anywhere in the world, but a new map tracking usage of “direct-to-device” services suggests uptake of them is anything but global.
Instead, Opensignal’s D2D Satellite Map shows six countries lit up with teal rectangles indicating one or more direct-to-device connections in a 39-by-19 km area: the US, followed by Australia, Canada, Chile, Japan, Peru, and New Zealand.
The rest of the world looks mostly or completely dark. Even in countries where SpaceX’s Starlink phone connectivity was available early on (such as Ukraine, also heavily reliant on Starlink broadband) or has already seen widespread use (like Jamaica, where Starlink proved instrumental in restoring cellular connectivity after Hurricane Melissa last October), the map shows only sparse signs of D2D usage.
Opensignal, one of the top sources of data on the coverage and performance of wireless networks, generated the map based on D2D connections recorded in its Android app and in partner Android apps. There’s no iPhone data on this map because Apple doesn’t allow sufficient system access to third-party software.
In a Friday video call, Lian Carl, VP of product management at Opensignal, cautioned that many of these detected D2D connections could be transient activity that doesn’t reflect any serious usage. “It may pop in and out,” she said, recalling that her own iPhone will sometimes switch from the cellular network to Globalstar’s satellite service in urban areas. “I’m not controlling when I’m in and out of satellite.”
Opensignal does regard the current version as fairly accurate in showing where phones are talking to satellites, even if parts of it may look weird. “We do believe that it is a representative view of where D2D connections are happening around the world,” Carl said.
The current version also doesn’t show which satellite services phones are connecting to, but it’s almost entirely SpaceX. “The grand majority, over 90%, are Starlink connections,” she said.
SpaceX launched its direct-to-cell service as an SMS-only option, but last October it enabled limited data support for a small set of designated apps; its US partner, T-Mobile, supports 20 consumer apps on Android and 23 on iOS.
At MWC Barcelona in March, SpaceX renamed the service Starlink Mobile and announced plans to upgrade it with new satellites operating on different frequencies, enabling much faster connections. Company executives speaking at that wireless-industry conference said they were not seeking to compete with terrestrial wireless carriers.
On Thursday, however, SpaceX said it now planned to do just that. Although some industry analysts remain deeply skeptical of its ability to compete with AT&T, T-Mobile, and Verizon, citing SpaceX’s scant terrestrial spectrum holdings and lack of ground infrastructure.
Data from the connectivity analytics firm Ookla has also shown near-zero usage of Starlink Mobile in the US. In March, it made up just 0.46% of users of its Speedtest app in the US.
But SpaceX remains far ahead of other D2D providers that offer only messaging, such as Globalstar and Skylo. It’s further ahead of those that have yet to put enough D2D satellites into orbit to launch commercial service, most notably AST SpaceMobile, which counts AT&T, Verizon, and multiple European carriers as partners. (Opensignal’s Carl observed that almost all of the D2D services Opensignal tracks only do messaging.)
Amazon is further off, planning to use its pending purchase of Globalstar to launch a D2D version of the Leo broadband service, which is nearing initial operation; the first satellite deployments for this phone offering would begin in 2028.
A report released in August by the Global Mobile Suppliers Association, a telecom trade group, counted 99 carrier partnerships for Starlink. The rest of the top five on its list of 15 D2D providers worldwide: AST, with 44 partnerships; Amazon Leo, with 30; Eutelsat, 29; and Lynk Global, 21.
Opensignal plans to update this map each month and surface more of the data it collects on usage by provider and usage type; you should definitely consider this map a 1.0 release. Said Carl: “We wanted to make this public to start educating the public.”
