The T-Mobile license is the first collaboration between a satellite operator and wireless carrier to be approved by the FCC to provide supplemental cell coverage from space. “The Commission recognized that satellite-to-device connectivity can support critical public interest benefits,

The US regulator is also allowing SpaceX to orbit some of the company's Starlink satellites closer to Earth, which should reduce latency.

Just after 5 a.m. Monday, SpaceX sent 23 Starlink satellites aboard a Falcon 9 rocket from Cape Canaveral to low-Earth orbit.The first-stage booster supporting this mission took its 13th flight today,

Monday's satellite launch means SpaceX has enough direct-to-cell satellites in orbit to offer robust coverage. But it still needs FCC clearance to operate them commercially.