Day: December 3, 2021

DUBAI, Dec. 3, 2021 /PRNewswire/ — The 5G market continues to enjoy impressive momentum globally. Early leadership from ‘pioneer’ operators in South Korea and China has given way to extensive deployments and healthy adoption across developed, and a growing number of developing, markets. With smartphone vendors building strong portfolios of affordable and attractive 5G smartphones, the 5G market is enjoying growth that has exceeded expectations influenced by the COVID-19 pandemic and global supply chain challenges.

According to the GSA, by the end of September 2021 180 operators in 72 countries/territories had launched 3GPP-based 5G services, either mobile or fixed wireless access (FWA) broadband deployments: 172 were offering commercial 5G mobile services and 66 5G FWA services. At the same time in the 4G lifecycle, Strategy Analytics counted just 75 commercial 4G LTE networks.

Those networks have grown at an impressive rate. More than 1.5 million 5G base stations have been deployed in the last two years, with over one million of these in China. Few operators globally have moved at the pace of the Chinese, but there are a growing number of operators who have built out 5G to more than half of the population in their market. By the end of 2021, Strategy Analytics forecasts that 2.3 billion people will be covered by at least one commercial 5G network, 29% of the world’s population. As with the network launches, this rate of coverage growth is more than 2x that seen with 4G LTE. We forecast that 5G networks will cover two-thirds of the world’s population by the end of 2026.

While the rate of 5G network expansion has been encouraging, Strategy Analytics has been impressed with the momentum building behind Standalone 5G in 2021. Again, the GSA has counted 19 operators in 15 countries who have launched public 5G Standalone networks by October 2021.

As you would expect with these deployment trends, 5G subscriber growth has also been strong and significantly outperformed 4G. The number of 5G subscriptions globally increased from 510 million at the end of June 2021 to 640 million in September, a level that it took 4G over five years to reach. According to our device technologies team, 425 million 5G phones were shipped in the first nine months of 2021, 3x above 2020 levels, and they forecast that 60% of smartphones sold in 2022 and 77% sold in 2026 will support 5G. Very early in the 5G technology cycle there is already ‘something for everyone’ in the smartphone market, with Apple dominating the high end and a growing number of (Chinese) vendors producing sub-$200 models for a global audience. While there has been healthy growth in FWA services and emerging enterprise applications, 5G phones are accounting for the bulk of 5G volumes today.

At Huawei’s recent Mobile Broadband Forum in Dubai, operators and industry bodies spoke clearly about the benefits they see 5G bringing to their business, to customers and to society. At a high level, the GSMA reiterated its call to the industry “to unlock the full power of connectivity so that people, industry, and society thrive“, emphasizing the upside for 5G operators in value generation and in contributing to society by connecting the unconnected, unlocking economic growth and enabling carbon emission reductions. The SAMENA Telecommunications Council built on this message by highlighting the contribution 5G is making in the Middle East with the growth in 5G utilization in the healthcare vertical, a sector that has seen rapid digitalization as part of the COVID-19 response, and in the oil and gas industries.

One area where 5G has made a positive contribution to the COVID-19 response has been in the deployment of 5G FWA services to support the significant changes in working patterns and education. Zain’s operations in Saudi Arabia and Kuwait have seen an encouraging performance boost from promotion of 5G FWA services, with revenue and profitability improving as it has focused on high-coverage, high-performance 5G for broadband connectivity. Zain has 450,000 5G FWA connections and 15,000 5G leased line connections delivering an ARPU of US$70 (versus a mobile ARPU of US$26 in Kuwait and US$20 in Saudi Arabia). 5G already accounts for 40% of traffic for Zain in Kuwait.

Zain is one of a number of Middle East operators enjoying early success with 5G. As the region leads globally in 5G FWA deployments it is also seeing healthy adoption of 5G smartphones supported by strong network footprints. For example, in the UAE, du has over 10% of its subscribers on 5G (on a network covering 90% of the population), with smartphone adoption complementing the role of FWA as a mainstream revenue source for the operator.

Alongside these successes in the Middle East, we often talk about successful 5G developments in China, South Korea, and the US, where 5G accounted for 27%, 26% and 17% of subscriptions respectively at the end of September. It is worth also looking to emerging markets to see 5G growth already happening. In the Philippines, both Globe and Smart have built good 5G FWA businesses and 5G mobile B2C adoption is also starting to develop, with over 1.8 million 5G connections in that market (albeit just 1.2% of the total). While in Thailand, AIS had 1.6 million 5G handsets on its network delivering 1.5 million ‘5G package subscriptions’, equivalent to 4.3% of its total customer base or 13% of its postpaid base. AIS’s 5G network covers 42% of Thailand’s population (90% of the capital region) and 5G phone prices start at low as US$45 on a US$30 service plan contract. It’s 5G ARPU is over US$18, offering a 10-15% uplift over postpaid ARPUs, with good gains made in its postpaid market share in 2021.

The speed with which developing nations have entered the 5G market (embracing the economies of scale unlocked in China) sets it apart from the early days of 4G dominated by developed markets. The scale of 5G today, on most measures 2-3 times the size of the 4G market at the same time in its lifecycle, is impressive and significantly exceeds the expectations as the technology came to market in 2018 and 2019. There is still much work for operators to do to support the 5G application and services ecosystem and deliver on its promise, but the foundations are very much in place.

Starlab to anchor NASA’s Commercial Low-Earth Orbit Destinations project as the space economy continues to grow

DENVER, Dec. 2, 2021 /PRNewswire/ — Nanoracks, in collaboration with Voyager Space and Lockheed Martin [NYSE: LMT], has been awarded a $160 million contract by NASA to design its Starlab commercial space station as part of the agency’s Commercial Low-Earth Orbit (LEO) Development program. Starlab will enable NASA’s initiative to stimulate the commercial space economy and provide science and crew capabilities prior to the retirement of the International Space Station (ISS).

“While today marks a major milestone for Nanoracks and our Starlab team, the impact goes far beyond this award,” said Dr. Amela Wilson, CEO at Nanoracks. “To receive this support from NASA validates over a decade of Nanoracks’ hard work forging commercial access to space, bringing over 1300 commercial payloads from 30 nations to the ISS. This opportunity opens far-reaching possibilities for critical research and commercial industrial activity in LEO.  We are honored to be selected as one of three awardees to work with NASA, and we cannot wait to bring our existing global commercial customer base to Starlab.”

The initial $160 million award to Nanoracks is made via a funded Space Act Agreement through 2025. This initial NASA-provided funding will be supplemented with customer pre-buy opportunities and public-private partnerships. Fully owned by Nanoracks, Starlab is planned to reach initial operating capability in 2027, which ensures continuous human presence in LEO by U.S. entities. NASA will have the opportunity to purchase crew and payload services on Starlab through separate services contracts with Nanoracks.

Nanoracks has unparalleled commercial experience on the ISS. Joined by Voyager Space’s sophisticated investment strategy and expertise in operational integration and Lockheed Martin’s engineering knowledge and strategic vision, the Starlab team presented a formidable program for the future of LEO commercialization.

The basic elements of the Starlab space station include a large inflatable habitat, designed and built by Lockheed Martin, a metallic docking node, a power and propulsion element, a large robotic arm for servicing cargo and payloads, and the George Washington Carver (GWC) Science Park. The GWC Science Park is a state-of-the-art laboratory system which will host a comprehensive research, science, and manufacturing capability. Starlab will have the capacity to continuously host up to four astronauts to conduct critical science and research.

“Starlab is the confluence of Lockheed Martin’s rich space expertise and history, Nanoracks’ innovation, and Voyager’s financial savvy. This team is equipped to aid NASA on its mission to expand access to LEO and to enable a transformative commercial space economy,” said Lisa Callahan, Vice President and General Manager, Commercial Civil Space at Lockheed Martin.

Nanoracks will prime Starlab’s development leveraging over a decade of experience as the pathfinder and global leader in commercial ISS utilization. Voyager Space, the majority shareholder in Nanoracks, will lead strategy and capital investment, and Lockheed Martin, a leader in developing and operating complex space technology, will serve as the technical integrator of the new advanced space station.

“Starlab’s impact on space commercialization cannot be understated,” said Dylan Taylor, Chairman and CEO at Voyager Space. “Today we are witnessing a major economic shift, where space businesses are tangible, well capitalized, and commercially sustainable. It takes a planet to explore the universe, and we invite the global community to be part of Starlab’s success.”

About Nanoracks

Nanoracks, a Voyager Space Company, is the world’s leading commercial space services provider. Nanoracks owns and operates private hardware on the International Space Station and has launched over 1,300 research experiments, deployed over 300 small satellites, and installed the Bishop Airlock. Today, Nanoracks leverages over a decade of experience to develop new commercial space systems in direct response to customer needs. These space systems include converting commercial launch vehicle upper stages into functional secondary platforms, building new habitable space stations, supplying payload and crew airlock systems and services infrastructure, and more. Follow @Nanoracks on Twitter to learn more.

About Voyager Space

Voyager Space is a global leader in space exploration. Voyager’s long-term mission is to create a vertically integrated, publicly traded NewSpace company capable of delivering any space mission humans can conceive. The firm’s first-in-industry model is uniquely tailored to support the growth needs of commercial space companies by replacing traditional private capital models with a longer-term approach that provides permanent capital. To learn more about Voyager Space, please visit: https://voyagerspace.com/ and follow @VoyagerSH on Twitter.

About Lockheed Martin

Headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland, Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT) is a global security and aerospace company that employs approximately 114,000 people worldwide and is principally engaged in the research, design, development, manufacture, integration and sustainment of advanced technology systems, products, and services. Please follow @LMNews on Twitter for the latest announcements and news across the corporation.

Cautionary Statement Concerning Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains “forward-looking statements.” All statements, other than statements of historical fact, including those with respect to Voyager Space Inc.’s (the “Company’s”) mission statement and growth strategy, are “forward-looking statements.”  Although the Company’s management believes that such forward-looking statements are reasonable, it cannot guarantee that such expectations are, or will be, correct. These forward-looking statements involve many risks and uncertainties, which could cause the Company’s future results to differ materially from those anticipated.  Potential risks and uncertainties include, among others, general economic conditions and conditions affecting the industries in which the Company operates; the uncertainty of regulatory requirements and approvals; and the ability to obtain necessary financing on acceptable terms or at all. Readers should not place any undue reliance on forward-looking statements since they involve these known and unknown uncertainties and other factors which are, in some cases, beyond the Company’s control and which could, and likely will, materially affect actual results, levels of activity, performance or achievements. Any forward-looking statement reflects the Company’s current views with respect to future events and is subject to these and other risks, uncertainties and assumptions relating to operations, results of operations, growth strategy and liquidity. The Company assumes no obligation to publicly update or revise these forward-looking statements for any reason, or to update the reasons actual results could differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements, even if new information becomes available in the future.

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