On Wednesday, Federal Communications Commission chairman Brendan Carr criticized Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) for opposing SpaceX’s proposal to launch a massive satellite-based data center network
FCC Chair Criticizes Amazon’s Petition Against SpaceX
“Amazon should focus on the fact that it will fall roughly 1,000 satellites short of meeting its upcoming deployment milestone,” Carr wrote in a post on X.
He said that the Jeff Bezos-founded company would be better off working toward that instead of filing petitions against companies that are placing thousands of satellites into orbit.
Separately, Carr told Reuters he does not expect Amazon’s petition against SpaceX to “get much traction.”
His remarks came after Amazon asked the FCC to reject Elon Musk-led SpaceX’s request to deploy up to 1 million low Earth orbit satellites.
Amazon Questions SpaceX’s 1-Million-Satellite AI Network
In its filing, Amazon described the proposal as a “lofty ambition rather than a real plan,” arguing that SpaceX has provided limited technical details on how the massive constellation would operate.
Amazon also warned the proposal could worsen concerns raised by scientists and astronomers about light pollution, orbital debris and the risk of Kessler syndrome — a scenario where collisions between space objects trigger a chain reaction of debris.
SpaceX’s Starlink Leads Satellite Internet Race
SpaceX already dominates the satellite internet market through its Starlink network, which has roughly 9,000 satellites in orbit and about nine million customers globally.
Amazon is developing a competing service through Project Kuiper and has invested more than $10 billion in the effort. However, the company has launched only about 200 satellites so far.
Earlier this year, Amazon requested a waiver or a 24-month extension to meet an FCC requirement to deploy about 1,600 satellites by July 2026, citing rocket shortages and manufacturing delays.
Price Action: Shares of AMZN fell 0.78% to close at $212.65 on Wednesday and slipped another 0.91% in after-hours trading to $210.72, according to Benzinga Pro.
According to Benzinga’s Edge Stock Rankings, AMZN shows a negative price trend across the short, medium and long term, while its Quality score ranks in the 73rd percentile.
Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.
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