PLDT’s wireless unit Smart Communications has extended its direct-to-device satellite trial with Lynk Global to Batangas in southwestern Luzon. The expansion marks the latest phase in Smart’s efforts to test D2D Satellite Connectivity for emergency use cases across the Philippines.
Smart confirmed on Tuesday that the Batangas tests centred on showing how satellite-enabled connectivity can deliver critical communications when terrestrial networks are unavailable during emergencies. The company said the trials simulated disaster scenarios in areas where network infrastructure may be temporarily disrupted following a calamity.
Smart Expands D2D Satellite Connectivity Tests
The Batangas trial builds on pilot activities that Smart and Lynk Global conducted earlier this year in Catanduanes and Ilocos Norte. Through its partnership with Lynk, Smart has been exploring how D2D Satellite Connectivity can function as a backup communications layer when conventional mobile networks go down.
Smart officially signed a partnership deal with Lynk Global in October 2025. Lynk Global, now also known as Elveo Mobile following its recent merger with Omnispace, provides satellite to phone messaging technology that works with standard mobile handsets. The combined Elveo Mobile entity is planning a constellation of 320 low-Earth orbit satellites and is expected to also have access to medium-Earth orbit and geostationary constellations and ground stations owned by SES, which held stakes in both Lynk and Omnispace prior to the merger.
Batangas Trials Target Emergency Communications
During the Batangas tests, Smart demonstrated how Lynk’s D2D messaging can deliver emergency alerts and public safety messages directly to customers in affected communities. The trial showed how satellite to phone connectivity can support government agencies and emergency responders during critical situations.
Menardo G. Jimenez Jr., PLDT’s COO and network head, said: “As disasters continue to pose challenges to communities across the country, PLDT and Smart remain committed to investing in technologies that help ensure critical information reaches people when they need it most.”
The focus on emergency communications reflects the Philippines’ vulnerability to natural disasters, where terrestrial telecom infrastructure can be knocked out by typhoons and other calamities, leaving communities without connectivity at the worst possible time.
Satellite Connectivity Supports Network Resilience
Smart is not alone in pursuing D2D Satellite Connectivity in the Philippines. Its rival Globe Telecom has been trialling Lynk’s direct-to-device service since October 2024 and commercially launched Starlink’s D2D satellite service across the country in June. Both Smart and Globe also hold memorandums of understanding with D2D provider AST SpaceMobile, signed in 2021 and 2022 respectively.
For Smart Communications, the Batangas trial represents a continued push to validate how D2D Satellite Connectivity can strengthen network resilience and ensure emergency communications reach people in disaster-hit areas. The expansion from earlier test sites in Catanduanes and Ilocos Norte to Batangas widens the geographic scope of Smart’s satellite to phone testing programme with Lynk Global.