- Spending on LEO services grows 24.5 per cent year‑on‑year, with remote businesses and consumers leading demand.
- Adoption broadens to IoT, maritime and aviation sectors offering infrastructure resilience and new enterprise use cases.
What happened: Growth in LEO satellite service spending
Gartner forecasts that global LEO satellite communications services spending will reach $14.8 billion in 2026, a 24.5 per cent rise over 2025, according to the analyst’s latest forecast report. The strongest growth stems from businesses and consumers in remote areas with limited or no terrestrial connectivity, where spending is projected to climb 40.2 per cent and 36.4 per cent, respectively.
Other important segments include IoT connectivity, capturing about 32 per cent of the market, followed by maritime and aviation at 13.8 per cent, and network resilience schemes at 7.7 per cent. Gartner highlights that early use cases remain fixed and mobile broadband for remote sites, temporary operations like construction, and connectivity for ships and aircraft, as well as emergency services and fallback broadband support.
Also read: Optus-led LEO project takes aim at Australia’s satellite autonomy
Also read: ESA and Hispasat launch Satellite Quantum Security Trial
Why it’s important
The rapid expansion of LEO satellite broadband reflects growing reliance on resilient and ubiquitous connectivity, particularly where traditional networks are sparse or unreliable. With over 20 active LEO service providers，including Starlink, OneWeb, Amazon Kuiper, Telesat, and more than 40,000 satellites anticipated in the coming years, this market shift signals that satellite internet is transitioning into mainstream enterprise infrastructure.. In sectors like agriculture, logistics, and energy, consistent connectivity enables real-time data collection and control for sensors and IoT devices, often in unreachable regions. Gartner notes these trends are opening new vertical applications beyond consumer broadband to global logistics and emergency response.
The surge in LEO spending shows that satellite communications are finally moving from niche to scale, supporting both business continuity and digital inclusion. Recognising this shift encourages governments and enterprises to plan adaptation now before terrestrial broadband gaps leave sectors behind. As LEO reduces latency and lowers cost per connection, more remote operations can modernise without waiting for fibre build‑out. The transition may also help balance digital access between urban and rural areas and enhance infrastructure resilience across industries.
