(Yicai) Nov. 24 -- China has launched a commercial trial of satellite Internet of Things services that will last two years to support the safe and healthy development of commercial aerospace, low-altitude economy, and other emerging industries.

The trial will allow eligible firms to conduct satellite IoT services in accordance with laws and regulations, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology announced at the three-day China 5G + Industrial Internet Conference held in Wuhan that ended yesterday. It aims to diversify supply in the satellite communication market and develop replicable and scalable industry experiences and models.

Satellite IoT services use satellite communication tech to connect to various IoT devices, providing data collection and transmission services for data collection terminals, wearables, and handheld devices, as well as for cars, ships, aircraft, and other means of transport.

Unlike ground-based IoT networks, which do not cover remote regions, airspace, oceans, among other areas, satellite ones can achieve full worldwide coverage, said Yu Xiaohui, president of the China Academy of Information and Communications Technology.

Most satellites used for satellite IoT operate in low Earth orbit at an altitude of 200 to 2,000 kilometers. Due to their proximity to Earth, users can access such services with speeds comparable to fourth- and fifth-generation networks.

Several Chinese companies have previously laid out satellite communication networks, including multiple low Earth orbit ones launched by China Unicom, the GW Constellation led by China Satellite Communications, and the Geely Constellation deployed by Zhejiang Shikong Daoyu Technology, a unit of auto giant Geely Holding Group.

The commercial trial of satellite IoT will help low-altitude economy operators address shortcomings in communication services and expand application scenarios in the sector, noted Zhu Keli, founding director of the China New Economy Research Institute.

"For example, agricultural drones can rely on satellite communication for cross-regional data scheduling and operational data transmission during cross-border operations," Zhu pointed out. "In addition, emergency rescue drones can maintain contact with command centers via satellites even when ground networks are lost in disaster-stricken areas."

The integration of satellite and IoT tech will attract more capital and resources into the low-altitude economy, promoting the coordinated development of supply chain links, including drone manufacturing, airspace management, and data services, and forming a virtuous cycle of "technology – scenarios – industry," Zhu noted.

Editors: Tang Shihua, Martin Kadiev