Satellites-as-a-Service: Selling Constellations to Governments
What exactly do governments buy when they buy "satellites-as-a-service", and how does it change an EO company's business?
Chapter summary
In a satellites-as-a-service deal a government buys one or more satellites built and often operated by a commercial company, plus ground systems, training and data access, under a multi-year contract.
Key takeaways
- 1
Variants range from reserved capacity on the company's existing fleet to dedicated satellites with the government's own tasking control, to joint ventures that build satellites in the customer's country.
- 2
Germany's roughly €1.7 billion SAR constellation through Rheinmetall and ICEYE, Sweden's and Poland's ICEYE systems, Japan's dedicated capacity from Planet and BlackSky's Gen-3 sovereign sales are examples.
- 3
For companies this turns imagery firms into manufacturers and systems integrators, with larger contracts, more backlog and more execution risk.
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