Apple started to offer satellite connectivity support in the smartphone world with the iPhone 14 series. Not wanting to be left behind, many Android manufacturers have started exploring satellite connectivity. Qualcomm made a deal with a satellite company earlier this year to add this technology to its chips, but the partnership was short-lived.

Qualcomm terminates deal with Iridium for satellite connectivity

Qualcomm appears to have delayed some of its plans to bring satellite-based messaging and emergency services to Android phones. After ending its partnership with satellite communications company Iridium, Qualcomm has delayed its Snapdragon Satellite platform.

The two companies first announced their collaboration in January this year. The Snapdragon Satellite platform was intended to enable SMS and emergency features on Android phones through Iridium’s Earth-orbiting satellite network.

Almost a year after the announcement, Iridium announced that Qualcomm had canceled the partnership. In his information on the subject, he stated that the technology was successfully developed. However, he said that smartphone manufacturers did not use this technology as much as expected.

Qualcomm announced that it terminated its agreement with Iridium last week. The collapse of the partnership also suggests that the Snapdragon Satellite platform faces some technical challenges. So far, phone makers have not used the Satellite chip outside of their high-end models.

The end of the partnership marks a setback for Qualcomm, which wanted to bring satellite connectivity to Android phones. However, with companies not adopting this platform, we can say that the satellite connectivity fashion was short-lived.

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