Qualcomm is discontinuing Snapdragon Satellite again after first launching the service in January. Phone manufacturers would not be interested in integrating SMS capabilities over satellite.

Qualcomm is pulling the plug on Snapdragon Satellite. The chip specialist introduced this service in January this year. Snapdragon Satellite was supposed to be the answer to satellite communications that Apple integrated into the iPhone. The technology would allow Android phones like iPhones to send emergency messages over a satellite network. In theory, this is useful in places without classic range, such as deep in nature.

Qualcomm partnered with Iridium for the new capacity, but has now terminated that partnership. Although Snapdragon Satellite works, phone manufacturers are not interested in integrating this particular version. Manufacturers prefer a standards-based alternative, notes Qualcomm. Snapdragon Satellite was tied to Qualcomm and Iridium, and phone makers didn’t want that.

Who pays?

In addition, the business case for SMS via satellite is still complex. For example, Apple itself pays for all emergency messages sent via its own system. There were still no clear agreements about who would pay the price for a message via an Android phone.

Iridium already plans to work directly with phone manufacturers on an alternative in the future. Currently, satellite communications seems to be a nice-to-have rather than a benefit in the phone world, so phone makers don’t want to immediately pay to commit to a particular technology.