Earlier this 12 months, Qualcomm introduced a partnership with satellite tv for pc connectivity supplier Iridium to create Snapdragon Satellite tv for pc, a proprietary expertise to attach smartphones to satellites to be able to present emergency and different providers. Ten months after the plan was introduced, the businesses are already calling it off.
As reported by CNBC, Qualcomm blames cellphone makers for the demise of the function, saying that there wasn’t a lot curiosity from manufacturers to incorporate the proprietary function. Whereas the corporate says that they “efficiently developed and demonstrated the expertise,” cellphone makers simply “haven’t included the expertise of their gadgets.”
Because of the lack of curiosity, Qualcomm has ended its partnership with Iridium. The corporate says that the market is shifting in the direction of a standards-based resolution quite than a proprietary one, in order that will probably be the place their focus goes in help of satellite tv for pc connectivity going ahead.
Qualcomm mentioned in a press release smartphone makers have “indicated a choice in the direction of standards-based options” for satellite-to-phone connectivity….We anticipate to proceed to collaborate with Iridium on standards-based options whereas discontinuing efforts on the proprietary resolution that was launched earlier this 12 months,” the corporate mentioned.
Iridium CEO Matt Desch mentioned in a press release, “Whereas I’m upset that this partnership didn’t bear quick fruit, we consider the path of the trade is evident towards elevated satellite tv for pc connectivity in shopper gadgets.” It’s attention-grabbing to see Qualcomm abandon a proprietary resolution since Samsung announced something similar earlier this year.
The function would have competed with Apple’s Emergency SOS through Satellite tv for pc function, which the corporate initially launched on the iPhone 14 lineup. With it, customers are in a position to contact emergency providers — even when they don’t have a mobile connection. To this point, Apple’s is the one broadly obtainable service for smartphone prospects.
Whereas Qualcomm has deserted its present plan, different firms like SpaceX are shifting ahead with their very own. Starlink’s satellite tv for pc communication service is set to launch next year. Ultimately, the corporate needs to offer satellite tv for pc connectivity within the type of textual content, cellphone, and even knowledge to telephones with out the necessity for any particular {hardware}.
