SpaceX CEO Elon Musk said on Thursday that the company’s purchase of 800 MHz spectrum would be an important milestone for providing satellite cellular connectivity services in the United States. According to Sina Finance, Musk said the spectrum would help SpaceX provide full mobile coverage in the United States, and he described the deal as the last key piece of the spectrum puzzle.

Musk was responding on X to a post by Tesla investor Sawyer Merritt, who said the 800 MHz spectrum would improve indoor coverage and provide signals that can penetrate walls and other obstacles. He also replied to investor and All In podcast host Chamath Palihapitiya, saying that while it may not seem like much to ordinary observers, it was "an earthquake" for those who understand the spectrum battle.

Telecom stocks fell after the news. AT&T dropped 6.59% in after-hours trading to $23.23, Verizon Communications fell 5.70% to $43.71, and T-Mobile US declined 6.10% to $160.86.

SpaceX has agreed to buy a nationwide spectrum asset from Grain Management, including up to 14 MHz of paired spectrum in the 800 MHz band. The company said the low-band spectrum will complement its existing 2 GHz spectrum and help Starlink Mobile provide connectivity for indoor devices.