Verizon and AT&T Achieve Satellite Video Call Milestones

Verizon and AT&T have each announced breakthroughs in cellphone-to-satellite video calling, partnering with AST SpaceMobile. Verizon completed its first video call from a phone to a satellite, while AT&T achieved the same using satellites destined for its commercial network. This sets up a competitive landscape against T-Mobile's SpaceX/Starlink satellite-to-cell service, which began public beta testing for satellite messaging earlier this month. AT&T and Verizon claim T-Mobile and SpaceX's offering will harm their networks. Both companies used AST's five BlueBird satellites launched last September for their tests.