Sending text messages at 5 yuan per message and making domestic calls at 9 yuan per minute, the first mobile direct satellite service user in Shanghai was born
In places without mobile communication network coverage such as deep mountains, dense forests, Gobi deserts, and vast oceans, how to maintain smooth communication with the outside world has always been a difficult problem that the communication industry is committed to solving in emergency times when natural disasters such as earthquakes, typhoons, and floods occur and cause mobile communication network interruptions. At the press conference of the "Digital Benefiting the People and Enjoying Beauty" Shanghai Telecom Beautiful Digital Festival held on September 22, Shanghai Telecom presented an honorary user certificate to the first mobile phone directly connected satellite service user in Shanghai, opening a new chapter for ordinary users to use Volkswagen smartphones for satellite calls.
This is also the first successful application of consumer mobile phones directly connecting to satellites and conducting two-way voice calls and SMS sending and receiving among global operators, solving many difficulties for ordinary users in obtaining and using satellite communication.
In 2008, China launched the project proposal for an independent mobile communication satellite system and successfully launched the Tiantong-1 01 satellite in 2016, achieving full coverage of China's territory and surrounding waters. In 2020 and 2021, Tiantong 1 02 and 03 satellites will be launched successively, extending its service scope to the "the Belt and Road" area.
China Telecom exclusively undertakes the operation of Tiantong satellite mobile communication services and officially launched Tiantong satellite commercial services in early 2020, giving Chinese people their own satellite phones. Afterwards, Tiantong satellite business was widely used in marine fisheries, emergency rescue, tourism exploration and other scenarios.
In order to further enhance the user experience, China Telecom launched the "Mobile Direct Satellite Service" in September this year. Users do not change their cards or numbers, and can use phones with support for Tiantong satellite calls. Once the function is activated, they can use it. At present, Huawei Mate 60 Pro/Pro+mobile phone users can quickly activate the direct satellite connection function by calling the 10000 customer service hotline, logging into China Telecom's network hall, micro hall, and offline business hall.
It is understood that the standard fee for direct satellite service is: users can activate the direct satellite communication function on their mobile phones to connect to the satellite and enjoy services such as making and answering calls, sending and receiving text messages, and receive 2 minutes of domestic calling satellite calls as a gift.
The mobile phone direct satellite service fee is limited to all China Telecom 4G/5G mobile phone users except for IoT cards and segment 174. The fee standards are as follows:
Domestic calls: 9 yuan/minute. Called calls include mobile phones, fixed phones and domestic satellite phones with 1349 and 174 stations in Chinese Mainland; Calling the Hong Kong, Macao, and Taiwan region: 9 yuan/minute, including mobile and landline phones belonging to the Hong Kong, Macao, and Taiwan region.
International long-distance call: 20 yuan/minute, including mobile and landline calls from other countries and regions; Calling international satellite phone: 50 yuan/minute, including international satellite phone numbers such as Maritime Satellite, Iridium, and Eurostar.
Domestic answering: 9 yuan/minute.
Sending satellite SMS is charged at a unified rate of 5 yuan per message, and receiving it is free of charge; Sending international SMS is not supported.