Viasat and Space42 Partnering on 'Space Tower' Venture for D2D Service

Viasat and Space42, a space tech company based in the United Arab Emirates, will form a joint venture, Equatys, which will be an infrastructure platform for direct-to-device and mobile satellite services, the companies said Monday. Equatys should be ready for commercial rollout within three years, they said, adding that it will operate and manage the 5G open architecture platform "as a neutral 'space tower' company providing ... space and ground infrastructure that licensed operators can share."