HFR and KT SAT Move Toward Commercial GEO-Based 5G NTN with Domestic Testbed

HFR, a leading South Korean ICT company specializing in digital infrastructure, providing solutions for optical transport, broadband access, and Private 5G networks for mobile operators and enterprises, has signed an MoU with satellite operator KT SAT to verify and commercialize 3GPP standards-based 5G NR Non-Terrestrial Network (NTN) services using geostationary (GEO) satellites.

Under the agreement, the companies will establish a domestic NTN testbed that combines KT SAT’s GEO satellite fleet and ground stations with HFR’s NTN gateway technologies, spanning the base station, core network, and service management layers. The goal is to validate end-to-end interoperability across satellites, gateways, and terminals, covering both the physical layer and upper protocol layers defined by 3GPP.

The companies plan to evaluate GEO-based NTN service concepts, test interoperability with terminal vendors, and jointly assess opportunities in the global NTN market and ecosystem. They will also study how GEO-based NTN architectures could be extended to non-geostationary orbit (NGSO) systems, supporting future multi-orbit services.

KT SAT will provide satellite bandwidth and ground infrastructure for the trials, while HFR will supply and integrate the NTN gateway and network architecture. Both companies frame the project as groundwork for commercial 5G NTN services and for strengthening the competitiveness of next-generation HTS GEO satellites, as the industry moves toward standardized satellite–terrestrial convergence.