Telstra launches Australia's first direct-to-satellite text messaging service

ABC NEWS (Australia)

Telstra is launching Australia's first satellite-to-mobile text messaging service. For now, it is only available to customers with Galaxy S25 phones who pay up-front, and it has some technical limitations.

Transcript

00:00It's that capacity to go outside, if you're in a remote area particularly, and use your

00:06handset, a smartphone, a recent one, something in the last two years ought to work eventually,

00:11and connect direct to a low-Earth orbit satellite.

00:14There's about 8,000 of these things spinning around the globe.

00:18And Telstra signed a deal with Starlink to use their 500 satellite network.

00:22So that will enable people to make a text message.

00:26It's not good for phone calls yet.

00:28They're still working on this technology, it's quite new.

00:31And when it comes to reliability, we spoke to Graham Lynch, he's a communications analyst.

00:36He looked at a US study just a few months ago.

00:39They found that messages dropped out, they didn't send, but he said the technology's improving

00:44all the time.

00:45TPG did some testing with their Vodafone network not long ago.

00:49Telstra tested it 55,000 times, so they must be feeling pretty confident.

00:54They're the first of the telcos to launch.

00:56We don't know when Vodafone might get up or Optus as well.

01:00So at this stage, it's just Telstra customers, those who've got an upfront plan, they're about

01:0460 to 80 bucks, and who've got a Galaxy S25 handset.

01:10So it really depends at this stage on whether you've got the right handset.

01:13Telstra says they'll roll out more handsets quite quickly.

01:16I don't think it'll take very long for iPhones to get enabled with this capacity, with this

01:21system.

01:22So the question is, I suppose, how soon the others will jump on board.

01:26And how expensive will it be to send that text message?

01:29Well, that'll just be wrapped into your plan.

01:31So actually, it won't cost you much extra at all.

01:35And this is a significant move?

01:38A lot of people are telling us it's a significant move.

01:39We spoke to a pastoralist who's out of Winton in Queensland.

01:43These are the people who are working in remote areas, right?

01:45And she said, well, I can't get it yet, right, because it's only the first day.

01:49But if I could send a text message, or my partner could, when he's out working and he

01:53has a breakdown, it's a 10 to 20 kilometre walk back to the house, right?

01:57So these kinds of things are really important.

02:00The Mining Exploration Association was saying the same thing.

02:03There's thousands of people prospecting out there.

02:05There's thousands of mining companies working in these areas.

02:08So the capacity to send text messages is going to be really vital.

02:12And the federal government says this system will extend it beyond the mobile phone tower

02:17range, right, another five million kilometres.

02:20That's almost two thirds of the country that will have access with a handset to be able

02:24to send a text message in an emergency.

02:27And all those people in black spots at the moment, who might not be that far out but can't

02:32get a mobile phone signal, will actually be able to send a text with their phones.

02:36It's time to get up, David.

02:38Thanks very much.

02:39Thanks so much.

02:40Cheers.

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