AST SPACEMOBILE $ASTS AND RAKUTEN ARE FORMING A JOINT VENTURE TO BUILD A SATELLITE-TO-PHONE NETWORK FOR JAPAN 🇯🇵
Japan's government will give the venture, Rakuten AST, up to ~$1B over ~3 years
AST will supply the satellites, which connect directly to regular smartphones. The goal is to start service in Japan by the end of March 2029.
Rakuten will own 51% of the venture and AST will own 49%.
AST SpaceMobile $ASTS secured S-band spectrum authorization from Brazil’s 🇧🇷 National Telecommunications Agency
ASTS also secured regulatory approval for the secondary use of spectrum in the 700 MHz band.