SpaceX Agrees to Buy Nationwide 800 MHz Spectrum; AT&T, Verizon, T-Mobile Fall More Than 6% After Hours

SpaceX said Thursday, Oct. 8, that it signed a definitive agreement to buy Grain Management's nationwide 800 MHz spectrum portfolio. The licenses cover up to 14 megahertz of paired spectrum. SpaceX called it the piece that will "pave the way for Starlink Mobile to become a major mobile carrier in the US."

The deal is not closed. It needs Federal Communications Commission approval, and the price has not been disclosed.

The market reaction

The carriers took the hit in extended trading after the regular session ended. AT&T fell 7.3% as of 5 p.m. ET. Verizon and T-Mobile each dropped about 6.6%, according to Bloomberg figures. MarketWatch put Verizon down almost 6% and the other two down more than 6%.

SpaceX shares rose roughly 1.5% to 2% after hours, following a 4% decline during regular trading. SpaceX went public in June in a record IPO and is valued at more than $2 trillion.

Tower companies moved the other way. In the extended session, Crown Castle rose 7%, SBA Communications 6% and American Tower 5%. Crown Castle shares have fallen almost 60% over five years as carriers cut spending after the first 5G buildout.

Why this spectrum

Low-band signals travel farther and push through walls and tree cover better than higher frequencies. SpaceX said its existing 2 GHz mid-band spectrum supplies capacity, while the 800 MHz holdings add a coverage layer that reaches indoors. It also said most existing phones already support the band, so customers would not need modified devices.

Elon Musk wrote on X that this is "the last critical piece of the spectrum puzzle needed for SpaceX to provide complete phone coverage in America." He also called it a "very big deal."

The FCC approved Starlink Mobile's second-generation constellation application this week. It authorizes 15,000 satellites built around 2 GHz spectrum. That approval is separate from the pending spectrum transfer.

Not a network yet

The analysts quoted on the deal are cautious about how far it gets SpaceX.

Tim Farrar of TMF Associates said it "adds fuel to the fire in the battle between SpaceX and the mobile operators." He added that it is "still a very limited amount of spectrum," and that reliable building penetration in urban areas would require SpaceX to deploy ground towers.

Bernstein's Madison Rezaei wrote that "buying spectrum is not a commitment to build a nationwide network." But he said it is "the spectrum we thought SpaceX needed to make that option more credible – and less expensive." Low-band spectrum needs fewer towers than higher frequencies.

Bernstein estimates SpaceX's total network cost at $50 billion to $130 billion across coverage scenarios. Rezaei said the deal could put "some wind back in the TowerCos' sails," which fits the after-hours jump in tower stocks. Starlink Mobile's launch is slated for 2027.

The carriers and the FCC

The timing is pointed. Last week T-Mobile, AT&T and Verizon formed a joint venture to expand satellite and direct-to-device coverage in underserved areas, and Starlink was not part of it. T-Mobile has also removed Starlink mentions from its T-Satellite promotions.

The FCC said Wednesday it would vote on a proposal to auction 25 megahertz of spectrum to support satellite-to-phone service. It also scheduled an Oct. 29 vote on seeking public comment on making another 482 MHz available for supplemental coverage from space and updating its direct-to-device rules. Both proposals could help SpaceX, and Amazon, which is also building a satellite network.

Starlink is the money engine behind this push. It is the only profitable SpaceX segment so far. In the second quarter it produced $1.66 billion in operating income on $4.29 billion in revenue, with 12 million subscribers as of June 30. Deutsche Bank estimates the global base reached 13.5 million by the end of September, including 4.1 million in the U.S.

The rest of the company is a different picture. SpaceX has trimmed its planned launch cadence for next year as it works to make Starship reliable and fully reusable. Its AI and cloud units are losing money.

SpaceX did not immediately say when new services could come online if regulators approve the transfer.

What comes next

The FCC's review of the license transfer is the gating item. SpaceX has not said what it is paying or on what timeline it would build out, and the Oct. 29 FCC vote on additional space-to-phone spectrum is the next scheduled regulatory marker.