TAMPA, Fla. — AST SpaceMobile received permission to provide direct-to-smartphone broadband services in the United States with up to 248 satellites, days after a botched launch complicated plans to ramp up deployments this year.

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Jason Rainbow writes about satellite telecom, finance and commercial markets for SpaceNews. He has spent more than a decade covering the global space industry as a business journalist. Previously, he was Group Editor-in-Chief for Finance Information Group,...