Japan's SoftBank and Intelsat have signed a collaboration agreement, which they say will lead to the launch of a unified "Ubiquitous Network." The two companies will jointly lead the research and development of seamless 5G connections between terrestrial mobile networks and satellite communications networks. Through this collaboration, SoftBank and Intelsat plan to jointly develop a hybrid communication solution that allows users to stay connected via available networks, whether terrestrial or satellite, anywhere in the world, with the convenience of using one device and one account.
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Research and Development
In a joint statement, Intelsat said that the solution will build on the same standard architectures, interfaces, and processes that enable the roaming of devices between terrestrial cellular networks today. This will help accelerate the commercial adoption of mobility solutions based on new 3GPP 5G standards for non-terrestrial networks.
Universal Device for Global Connectivity
A key goal of the collaboration is to develop a universal device that will stay connected regardless of location. This technology will enable seamless transitions between terrestrial 5G networks and satellite communications, benefiting applications across land, maritime, and disaster response sectors, according to the official release.
Hybrid Networks
Intelsat said, "Until now, the challenge has been aligning standards that allow the two different networks to connect. With recent progress on 5G-based standardization of non-terrestrial networks, led by Intelsat at 3GPP, and this strategic collaboration with SoftBank, we are ideally positioned to accelerate the design and practical implementation of commercial hybrid services that will allow devices to freely roam between satellite and terrestrial networks."
SoftBank's CTO said, "By using technology that switches between terrestrial mobile networks and satellite communication networks through roaming, we can integrate the two previously separate networks and utilise satellite communication as an extension of mobile communication. Through this joint research and development, SoftBank and Intelsat aim to build a Ubiquitous Network where people and things around the world can stay connected anytime, anywhere."
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Phased Development and Commercialisation
The design, development, field testing, and commercialisation of new hybrid network products between Intelsat and SoftBank will be conducted in phases, in alignment with the development of new 3GPP 5G non-terrestrial network standards. The resulting hybrid solutions will allow for the use of existing satellite terminals in the near term and newer 5G-based terminals as they become available.
