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AST SpaceMobile Selects NEC to Manufacture Key Satellite Modules
December 11, 2020 GMT
MIDLAND, Texas, Dec. 11, 2020 /PRNewswire/ AST & Science LLC (“AST SpaceMobile”) today announced that it has selected NEC Platforms, Ltd., a subsidiary of NEC Corporation (TSE: NEC) and a leader in the integration of IT and network technologies, to manufacture essential AST SpaceMobile satellite modules. NEC Platforms, based in Japan, will mass produce these modules, which are the cornerstone of AST SpaceMobile’s patented technology for its high-powered low-Earth-orbit (LEO) satellites.
AST SpaceMobile has developed the first satellite technology which connects directly to off-the-shelf smartphones at broadband speeds without any need for specialized satellite hardware. The AST SpaceMobile network will enable seamless roaming to and from terrestrial cellular networks, filling mobile coverage gaps
Ericsson appears to be first out of the traps with a 5G standalone core network contract from Japanese operator KDDI.
The Sweden-based vendor announced that it has been selected to deploy a cloud-native dual-mode 5G core in KDDI s 5G standalone network in Japan, paving the way to ramp-up 5G use case development and realization.
It s not clear whether Nokia will also provide standalone 5G core technology to KDDI; like Ericsson, the Finnish vendor announced the completion of a 5G core standalone network trial with the operator in February this year.
KDDI has previously revealed that Ericsson, Nokia and Samsung Electronics will be its primary 5G partners. The operator has also been working with Cisco Systems, which trumpeted its role in supporting the operator s transition to 5G with the Cisco Virtualized Packet Core and Control and User Plane Separation (CUPS) architecture.