SoftBank and Sceye Sign Five-Year Agreement to Commercialize Aerial Cell Towers in Japan

SoftBank and Sceye Sign Five-Year Agreement to Commercialize Aerial Cell Towers in Japan

SoftBank has signed a five-year agreement with Sceye to operate a fleet of high-altitude platform station (HAPS) aircraft that will provide direct-to-device network coverage across Japan.

Under the agreement, Sceye will supply lighter-than-air (LTA) HAPS vehicles, which are similar in form to blimps or zeppelins. The initial fleet is expected to deliver mobile broadband throughout Japan. A subset of the aircraft will also establish a free-space optical (FSO) network in the stratosphere.

The deployments are intended to expand reliable connectivity, support emergency communications during disasters, and enable applications involving AI, IoT, edge computing, and future 6G networks.

From flight testing to commercial operations

The agreement follows a successful 30-day Service Test 1 (ST1) mission. During that mission, a Sceye aircraft launched from the company's hangar in Roswell, New Mexico, and traveled across the Pacific to Japan under satellite-based control. After landing, the aircraft established a connection with a ground gateway on Shikoku Island, on Japan's Pacific coast.

During a week of operations over Japan, SoftBank and Sceye delivered services from an altitude of approximately 12.4 miles. Demonstrated applications included video streaming, emergency communications, indoor connectivity, HAPS-based remote drone control, and edge computing performed directly aboard the aircraft.

The mission also included what the companies described as the world's first demonstration of stratospheric laser ranging. The test tracked a HAPS aircraft traveling through the atmosphere between the ground and the stratosphere.

Part of SoftBank's Ubiquitous Transformation strategy

SoftBank invested an undisclosed amount in Sceye last year. The new master service agreement marks the next phase of their strategic partnership and expands SoftBank's broader Ubiquitous Transformation strategy.

The initiative is intended to complement terrestrial mobile networks with non-terrestrial infrastructure that can provide communications during disasters.

Masayuki Kamimura, senior director of SoftBank's Ubiquitous Network Planning Division, said the agreement represents the commercialization of HAPS technology and advances the company's Ubiquitous Transformation vision. He said the partnership combines Sceye's HAPS technology with SoftBank's telecommunications expertise to develop a resilient, three-dimensional communications network connecting the ground, sky, and space.

The companies said the network could expand connectivity, strengthen disaster preparedness, and support new applications associated with the 6G era.