Deutsche Telekom chief casts doubt on Starlink Mobile wireless carrier plans

The chief executive officer of Deutsche Telekom, Tim Höttges, has questioned plans by SpaceX to launch Starlink Mobile as a major wireless carrier in the United States, The Verge reported. Speaking during an earnings call on Thursday, Höttges stated that he takes the Elon Musk-owned company super serious but estimated that building the network will cost at least $200 billion. Bloomberg Tech reported that SpaceX plans to create a terrestrial wireless network to compete directly with AT&T, Verizon, and T-Mobile US. [1][4]

During the earnings call, Höttges pointed out that Musk has acquired 76 megahertz of wireless spectrum compared to the 400 megahertz held by Deutsche Telekom, according to The Verge. He noted that Musk would need triple-digit billions of dollars to purchase a comparable spectrum position to build out the carrier. [1]

Musk is the chief executive officer of both SpaceX and Tesla. German telecommunications company Deutsche Telekom is the majority shareholder of T-Mobile US, which operates as the second largest wireless carrier in the United States and is based in Bellevue, Washington. [7][8]

Separately, CNBC Tech reported that SpaceX and Tesla lost over $420 billion in combined market value following Tuesday's midterm elections. SpaceX shares fell by about 9 percent and Tesla fell 11 percent on Thursday afternoon as investors weighed concerns over potential congressional investigations and stricter regulations for Musk's companies. [2]