From Cell Sites to Satellites: Bridging More Than the Digital Divide

Why is MD7 deploying satellite earth stations? Aren’t we a cell site deployment company? 

This is true. For the last 20 years, MD7 has focused on connecting the world through cellular connectivity on towers, buildings, rooftops, and light poles. Recently, we have expanded our services to include satellite earth stations. Some might ask whether investing time and resources into satellite communication networks makes good business sense given the cell site industry has tens of thousands of sites (with many opportunities for work), while satellite companies may have only hundreds. 

This expansion makes sense if you understand who we are and how we envision our impact on our communities. 

At MD7 we help operators build a more connected world. Most people are aware that satellite-to-earth stations serve a critical role in bridging the Digital Divide by providing a unique connectivity solution in rural and remote environments. If looking to place a call from boats, planes, or the tundras of Alaska, satellite connectivity may be your only option. Beyond that, Elon Musk’s Starlink may be the prototype for a future communication network on Mars. 

To understand the full potential of satellite-based connectivity, we draw upon our past experiences. Back when I was a young lawyer working in a firm that handled cell site leases, some of my colleagues believed this work would be a short-term project. After all, they mused, how many cell towers could we possibly need? Surely, once the network was built, folks would move on to other work. 

Twenty years later, we are still building new cell sites. What we didn’t know then was how quickly cell sites would evolve alongside technology as we moved from analog to 5G, from talking to streaming. 

Similarly, we cannot foresee today the full spectrum of possibilities for satellite networks in the decades to come. Perhaps instead of “building a world connected” through mobile networks, MD7 will be “building worlds connected” – plural.  Sounds like a lot of fun!