Direct-to-cell

Ordinary satellite internet needs a dedicated antenna installed at home. With direct-to-cell, the satellite acts as a cell tower in the sky, and the phone in your pocket connects to it as it is. A phone's radio signal is weak, so the satellite must carry a very large antenna, or many satellites must be flown low.

It started with text messages and emergency rescue requests, and it is spreading to calls and internet. Rather than replace networks on the ground, it is mostly used to fill the gaps in mountains, seas and deserts that cell towers cannot reach. That is why satellite companies and phone carriers team up to offer the service.

Say you are hiking, you get lost, and your phone shows no service. With this technology, you could send a rescue text as long as you can see the sky.

It means fewer places with no signal. It is also a backup for when a disaster knocks down the cell towers, so several satellite companies are competing in this market.