SpaceX

3–4 minutes

TAMPA, Fla. — British mobile operator Virgin Media O2 said it started offering satellite-to-smartphone connectivity in the United Kingdom Feb. 26, marking the first commercial deployment of SpaceX’s Starlink Direct-to-Cell service in Europe.

The service is initially limited to subscribers using select Samsung Galaxy devices for an additional 3 British pounds ($4) per month, with plans to include it at no extra cost in a high-tier plan in the future.

Beyond messaging and voice, the satellite link supports a limited number of apps that include Google Maps, WhatsApp and Elon Musk’s X, similar to Starlink Direct-to-Cell rollouts in the United States and other countries.

Virgin Media O2, owned by Spanish telecoms giant Telefonica, said the space-enabled service expands its U.K. landmass coverage from 89% to 95%, adding an area roughly two-thirds the size of Wales.

The move follows regulatory approval earlier this month, allowing the mobile operator to modify its U.K. spectrum license to support satellite connectivity to standard smartphones.

British telecoms regulator Ofcom also finalized rules enabling direct-to-device services, establishing a framework for satellite operators to use terrestrial mobile spectrum with carrier partners to extend coverage beyond cell towers.

Similar to the U.S. Federal Communications Commission’s Supplemental Coverage from Space framework adopted in 2024, the U.K. rules allow satellite services to operate on a secondary basis, meaning they must avoid causing interference to primary terrestrial or Mobile Satellite Services users.

Starlink has announced partnerships with 11 cellular providers to date, offering reciprocal Direct-to-Cell access across participating markets:

• T-Mobile (United States)
• Optus and Telstra (Australia)
• Rogers (Canada)
• One NZ (New Zealand)
• KDDI (Japan)
• Salt (Switzerland)
• Entel (Chile and Peru)
• Kyivstar (Ukraine)
• Virgin Media O2 (U.K.)
• Airtel Africa (Nigeria)