The Future of Satellite IoT: Competition Heats Up as 6G Deadline Looms

The decades-old "satellite-IoT" race has reached an inflection point, with several companies racing against the clock to establish themselves as leaders in this growing market. As the demand for connected devices in various industries continues to rise, satellite-IoT is becoming increasingly important for applications such as livestock tracking, wildfire detection, and global supply-chain monitoring.

The telecom standards body that created 4G and 5G has already settled on a satellite-IoT protocol that will be used in the development of 6G. However, this protocol may not be suitable for all IoT devices, as it requires SIM cards or operates on networks that need to stay strictly private. As a result, alternative technologies are emerging as potential competitors.

One such company is Kinéis, which has developed a satellite-IoT solution using the LoRa radio protocol. LoRa is designed for long-range, low-power IoT applications and can cover areas of thousands of kilometers per satellite. According to Vincent Deslandes, strategic product manager at Kinéis, "LoRa is explicitly designed to address terrestrial and satellite IoT use cases without requiring additional firmware."

Deslandes noted that while 6G's satellite-IoT market will expand exponentially, the niche for low-power alternatives like LoRa-based satellite-IoT will remain. He added that there is room for both 6G and LoRa-based satellite-IoT solutions, as they cater to different needs.

Researchers at French and Swiss universities, along with Kinéis collaborators, have developed an ultraefficient protocol for satellite-based IoT signals. The experiment involved test signals transmitted using lower frequencies and found that a low Earth orbiting satellite overhead could pick up 100-milliwatt pings sent from the ground. Signals using this experimental protocol were deciphered even when ambient noise outpowered the signal by a factor of nearly 27 to 1.

Another company, Hubble Network, is promoting a different approach to satellite-IoT. Using a low-energy standard developed by the Bluetooth consortium, Hubble Network's seven satellites can pick up signals from any device with a Bluetooth chip. According to CEO Alex Haro, "The receive sensitivity that we have with our satellites is roughly the same receive sensitivity as devices have with the GPS network."

Haro noted that this approach allows for a global network that works with a 10-cent Bluetooth chip, enabling innovative applications such as tracking every package ever shipped. However, industry analyst Petar Popovski at Aalborg University in Denmark expressed concerns about the limitations of using Bluetooth as a standalone satellite-IoT contender.

The anticipated 6G satellite-IoT protocol, currently called Narrowband Internet-of-Things Non-Terrestrial Networks (NB-IoT NTN), is expected to become more useful for various applications when rolled into broader 6G standards. However, this leaves room for competition from alternative technologies like LoRa and Bluetooth-based solutions.

Legacy satellite-IoT operators Iridium and Globalstar are already serving industrial customers using proprietary protocols. Myriota, a startup based in Adelaide, Australia, has developed a satellite-IoT payload designed for lunar deployment that pushes the technology's frontier deep into cislunar space. Skylo, a Mountain View, Calif.-based company, is offering commercial NB-IoT NTN service via geostationary satellites.

Industry analyst Johan Fagerberg at Berg Insight notes that satellite-IoT built on cellular standards will likely dominate the market after 2030, especially once 6G specifications are ready. However, unlicensed technologies like LoRa and low-energy Bluetooth will remain relevant for ultralow-cost, low-payload devices where users value simple modules and private/hybrid networks.

As the competition heats up, companies such as Kinéis and Hubble Network are running hard against each other to establish themselves as leaders in satellite-IoT. However, the real finish line ahead is 2030, when the rules of the contest change.

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