Satellite services provider Iridium has struck a partnership with German telco Deutsche Telekom (DT).

The partnership will see Iridium provide DT global connectivity via its NTN DirectSM service.

The partnership will see DT gain roaming access to Iridium's forthcoming 3GPP standards-based 5G service, providing NB-IoT direct-to-device (D2D) connectivity.

Founded in 1987, Iridium joined the 3GPP in 2023.

Iridium added that the companies will integrate Iridium NTN Direct with Deutsche Telekom's terrestrial global IoT network.

The service is due to go live in 2026, with T-Mobile confirmed to be one of the first carriers to integrate Iridium's L-band service with terrestrial infrastructure.

According to Iridium, the NTN network will enable DT's customers to roam onto the Iridium network to support a host of use cases such as messaging, tracking, and status updates for IoT, automotive, and industrial devices, with applications spanning international cargo logistics, remote utility monitoring, smart agriculture, and emergency response.

"Iridium NTN Direct is designed to complement terrestrial networks like Deutsche Telekom and provide seamless global coverage, extending the reach of their own infrastructure," said Matt Desch, CEO of Iridium. "This partnership underscores the power of creating a straightforward, scalable solution that builds on existing technology to enable global service expansion."

Jens Olejak, head of satellite IoT at Deutsche Telekom, added: "By providing our customers with access to Iridium's extensive LEO satellite network, they will benefit from broadened global NB-IoT coverage to reliably connect sensors, machines, and vehicles.

"This convergence is now possible through affordable, 3GPP-standardized 5G devices that function across both terrestrial and non-terrestrial networks."

Last year, Iridium confirmed that it extended the lifespan of its existing satellites by five years. As such, Iridium said it had extended the average lifespan to 17.5 years, taking the fleet to 2035.

Iridium’s original L-band satellites launched in the late 1990s and were retired around 20 years later. Work on the company’s second-generation fleet – known as NEXT – began in 2017. Today, the network comprises 80 machines.