4iG and SpaceX Sign Europe's First Starlink Direct-to-Cell and Sovereign Defense Pact
Hungarian telecommunications and defense conglomerate 4iG Group signed two agreements with SpaceX on Wednesday, September 2, 2026, establishing what the companies describe as Europe's first partnership to deploy Starlink Mobile direct-to-cell services alongside a dedicated framework for encrypted defense communications. The agreements, executed at SpaceX facilities in Texas, span both commercial cellular coverage and military network sovereignty across Hungary and the Western Balkans. The partn
OST Staff · September 3, 2026
Hungarian telecommunications and defense conglomerate 4iG Group signed two agreements with SpaceX on Wednesday, September 2, 2026, establishing what the companies describe as Europe's first partnership to deploy Starlink Mobile direct-to-cell services alongside a dedicated framework for encrypted defense communications. The agreements, executed at SpaceX facilities in Texas, span both commercial cellular coverage and military network sovereignty across Hungary and the Western Balkans.
The partnership expands 4iG Group's space and defense portfolio across Central and Eastern Europe. The firm previously anchored its space division by contracting Northrop Grumman to manufacture HUGEO, Hungary's first sovereign geostationary satellite, under the HUSAT program. 4iG Space and Defence Technologies also broadened its transatlantic footprint through a $100 million strategic equity investment in commercial space station operator Axiom Space.
The deal encompasses two satellite communications vectors. On the commercial side, 4iG will integrate SpaceX's satellite-to-mobile technology into its regional terrestrial mobile networks to provide coverage in unserved or remote regions across Hungary and the Western Balkans. The initial direct-to-cell rollout will transition to second-generation V2 Starlink Mobile technology using SpaceX's global 2 GHz spectrum rights, establishing a 3GPP-compliant 5G Non-Terrestrial Network.
On the defense side, 4iG SDT and SpaceX will co-develop an end-to-end encrypted satellite communications architecture under a Sovereign Solutions framework. The system provides hardened data links and redundant command-and-control capacity for national security and civil defense applications during terrestrial network outages.
The agreement was finalized by Gellért Jászai, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of 4iG Group, and Gwynne Shotwell, President and Chief Operating Officer of SpaceX. "Today's announcement underscores the importance of making connectivity ubiquitous for everyone," Shotwell said. "4iG Group and SpaceX developed a first-of-its-kind model that represents a commercial service with Starlink's satellite-to-mobile technology and establishing the first Sovereign Solutions in Europe."
The companies frame the arrangement as a model combining commercial cellular extension with military network sovereignty, delivering both consumer connectivity and a hardened, encrypted tier for government and defense users in a single partnership.
4iG Group plans to initiate first-generation Starlink Mobile commercial messaging and voice services across its Central and Eastern European operating territories following regulatory approvals. Subsequent phases will introduce high-bandwidth 5G NTN data capabilities and operationalize the encrypted Sovereign Solutions channels for military and government users across the region.