US telecom stocks slip, rattled by SpaceX's mobile ambitions

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05/08/2026 10:58

** Shares of U.S. telecom stocks down premarket after SpaceX SPCX.O reveals ambition to build full-fledged mobile service 
** Co outlined plans that could eventually pit Starlink against industry leaders Verizon, AT&T and T-Mobile
** Verizon VZ.N shares slip 2.3%, AT&T T.N down 2.2%, T-Mobile TMUS.O falls 1.2%
** SpaceX acquired 65 megahertz of wireless spectrum licenses from EchoStar ECHO.O for a total of $19.6 bln through two deals announced last year
** "The spectrum that we purchased from EchoStar does have terrestrial components, so we definitely intend to build out terrestrial," SpaceX President Gwynne Shotwell said during a post-earnings call on Tuesday
** The three largest U.S. wireless carriers have invested hundreds of billions of dollars over three decades into acquiring spectrum licenses, building and upgrading their networks, and spending heavily to attract and retain subscribers — advantages analysts say would be difficult for SpaceX to match

 (Reporting by Tharuniyaa Lakshmi in Bengaluru)
 ((tharuniyaa@thomsonreuters.com))