Amazon Buys Satellite Operator Globalstar for $11.57B — and Inherits Apple's iPhone Connectivity Deal

Amazon announced it will acquire satellite operator Globalstar in an all-cash deal worth $11.57 billion — $90 per share — securing immediate access to operational satellite infrastructure, global spectrum licenses, and a live partnership powering satellite features on every iPhone and Apple Watch.

What Amazon is actually buying

Globalstar’s orbital assets are only part of the transaction. More strategically valuable is the ground network: 24 global gateways with licensed spectrum across more than 120 countries. Building this from scratch would take years and hundreds of billions in spectrum auction bids. Amazon also inherits Globalstar’s existing regulatory approvals in markets where Project Kuiper is still navigating allocation processes.

The Apple dimension is significant and deliberate. Globalstar has powered iPhone’s Emergency SOS via satellite, Messages via satellite, Find My, and Roadside Assistance since Apple made a $1.5 billion investment in the company in 2024, acquiring roughly 20% equity. Amazon and Apple have separately confirmed that Amazon Leo will continue providing those services under a new agreement. For Apple, disrupting this infrastructure mid-product-cycle was not an option — both companies moved to lock in continuity before the deal was announced.

The real target: Direct-to-Device connectivity

Project Kuiper currently plans to deploy around 3,200 satellites. Starlink operates more than 10,000. Amazon’s ambition to reach Direct-to-Device (D2D) connectivity — delivering cellular service directly to smartphones without a cell tower — was bottlenecked by spectrum access. Globalstar fills that gap with licensed bands, existing device-manufacturer relationships, and a working deployment model that is already live on hundreds of millions of iPhones.

SpaceX explored acquiring Globalstar in November 2025. Amazon outbid them. The satellite connectivity market is now a two-horse race, and every major smartphone platform is picking sides.

What this means for developers

If you build on iOS or satellite APIs — emergency services integrations, location features, offline-first mobile experiences — the underlying infrastructure is moving to Amazon ownership. AWS services will eventually integrate with Globalstar’s ground network for satellite IoT and edge compute. Amazon hasn’t committed to a public timeline, but the architectural direction is clear: every AWS region will eventually have a satellite-connected edge tier.

The deal requires regulatory approval across multiple jurisdictions but is expected to close later in 2026. Amazon’s stock rose roughly 5% on the announcement; Globalstar jumped 10%.