FCC approves transfer of Globalstar authorizations to Amazon

On October 27, 2026, the FCC Space Bureau approved the transfer of Globalstar’s U.S. satellite authorizations to Amazon. The decision advances the proposed acquisition, but it does not complete the deal or grant Amazon’s separate global direct-to-device (D2D) application. The FCC’s transaction page identifies the proceeding as GN Docket No. 26-134.

What the FCC approved

The FCC’s June 4, 2026, public notice lists the authorizations in the transfer application: Globalstar space-station and earth-station licenses, domestic and international Section 214 authorizations, and an experimental license. The public notice describes the application’s scope; the approval concerns transferring control of those authorizations to Amazon.

The C-3 grant and Amazon’s separate D2D application

Globalstar’s C-3 system has a separate U.S. market-access grant. Amazon Leo’s use of that grant to build and launch the system depends on the acquisition closing, according to NeoTeo’s report on the FCC decision. Amazon Leo’s planned LE-04 mission is a separate part of its satellite program; NeoTeo previously covered the mission’s staged payload at Kourou.

The transfer approval also did not grant Amazon’s separate global D2D constellation application. NeoTeo reported that the application remained pending after the decision. The proposed acquisition and the D2D application are distinct steps, so the transfer approval does not authorize that separate system.

Closing and continuing obligations

The FCC’s approval did not itself complete the acquisition. April coverage reported that Amazon and Globalstar expected to close in 2027, subject to remaining conditions.

Via Satellite reported that the approval requires Amazon to continue complying with specified Globalstar agreements dating to 1999 and 2004 that involve the U.S. Department of War, the Department of Justice, and the FBI.