Viasat seeking Telesat LEO capacity as Starlink competition mounts
TAMPA, Fla. — Geostationary operator Viasat is in advanced talks to buy broadband capacity from Telesat's future low Earth orbit (LEO) satellites as competition from Starlink is set to intensify in the incoming Trump Administration.
Mark Dankberg, Viasat's CEO and chair, disclosed the negotiations during a Nov. 6 earnings call with analysts, where he also said the company is exploring strategic alternatives for parts of its business.
In September, Viasat agreed a deal to use capacity from Eutelsat's OneWeb LEO constellation to provide low-latency broadband through its NexusWave multi-orbit service for the maritime market.
OneWeb is slated to begin global services in spring following ground segment delays. SpaceX is due to start launching Telesat Lightspeed satellites in mid-2026 for commercial services the following year .
Dankberg said the company is searching for financial and capital structure alternatives to help realize the value of assets that are under appreciated on the stock market, despite "delivering growth and increasing their potential."
Raymond James analyst Ric Prentiss highlighted two areas Viasat could be focusing on: its Defense and Advanced Technologies (DAT) business and the L-band radiowaves the operator is leveraging to compete in the fledgling direct-to-smartphone market.
Starlink pressure
Viasat faces mounting competition from SpaceX's sprawling Starlink network across its satellite communications business.
Dankberg said the fixed broadband market remains the company's single-biggest headwind, although the outlook is improving because of the potential for more enterprise customers following a decline in the U.S. residential market.
The company reported $185 million in revenue for its fixed services division for the three months to the end of September, down 25% compared with the same period last year.
Viasat has been shifting available capacity to the fast-growing market for providing Wi-Fi on planes, partly in response to the near total in-orbit failure of its first next-generation geostationary satellite ViaSat-3, which was insured.
Dankberg said airplane delivery delays, compounded by a strike among Boeing workers that is now over, impacted its aviation services, but demand in this market remains strong even as Starlink begins to build traction among major airlines .
Revenues for aviation services jumped 17% to $262 million for Viasat's fiscal second quarter of 2025.
Maritime sales slipped 7% to $121 million, which Dankberg said was primarily driven by old L-band geostationary services that have been declining for several years.
He said a decline in maritime revenues was much more modest for Viasat's higher-speed Ka-band geostationary services, which will be boosted when multi-orbit capabilities come online next year.
Total revenues for the quarter, including the company's DAT division, fell 1% year-on-year to $1.12 billion when excluding one-time revenue in 2023 from a litigation settlement.
Viasat reported a net loss of $138 million for its fiscal second quarter, which the company said was an improvement on last year's $767 million net loss thanks mainly to satellite impairment charges.
The company continues to expect to report slightly up year-on-year growth for its full fiscal year 2025, and mid-single-digit growth in adjusted EBITDA, or earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization.
Starlink boost
SpaceX's billionaire CEO Elon Musk is one of Donald Trump's most vocal supporters, helping him reclaim the White House by leveraging his social network site X and making hefty financial donations.
Trump thanked Musk during his Nov. 6 victory speech in West Palm Beach, Florida, where he also praised Starlink's direct-to-smartphone communications in North Carolina after Hurricane Helene knocked out terrestrial networks in September.
Prentiss of Raymond James said "the strong relationship between SpaceX CEO Elon Musk and President Elect Trump will be a dynamic we will be watching regarding our entire universe."
Viasat's direct-to-smartphone plans also face growing competition from L-band rival Globalstar, which closed an investment deal worth $1.7 billion Nov. 5 to expand its constellation.
Viasat's shares closed down nearly 8% to $9.48 Nov. 7, after declining by more than 66% since the start of the year.
