Corporate Space Power

Unveiling Structural and Infrastructural Power in New Space Networks

Corporate Space Power: Unveiling Structural and Infrastructural Power in New Space Networks by Marieluna Frank is an academic study of corporate power in the changing politics of earth orbits. Published by Nomos in 2026 as Volume 1 of the series Governance, Security and Sustainability in Space, the book is based on a dissertation defended in 2025. It examines a timely problem: earth orbits are becoming more commercialized, more congested, more infrastructurally important, and more politically contested.

What the Book Really Is

This book is not a general “space economy” overview. It is a political science and international relations study about power. Its central question is how corporate actors shape the emerging governance of earth orbits, especially Low Earth Orbits. The author argues that public debates about “New Space” often focus on visible and spectacular actors such as SpaceX, while deeper power structures remain less visible.

The book’s main contribution is the concept of corporate space power. This concept has two major dimensions. The first is structural power, meaning power that emerges from an actor’s position in networks. The second is infrastructural power, meaning power that emerges from the ability to deploy, own, and control critical orbital infrastructure with broad reach and social effects.

Target Audience and Context

The book is best suited for academic readers, policy analysts, space governance researchers, international relations scholars, and advanced students. It is also useful for readers interested in SpaceX, Starlink, satellite constellations, orbital congestion, global commons, military-industrial networks, and the politics of private infrastructure.

The context is important. The author treats earth orbits as a global commons and as a space of emerging governance. Governance mechanisms are still developing, while corporate actors are already expanding their influence. This creates a risk: if new rules are built around already powerful actors, future governance systems may freeze existing inequalities rather than correct them.

Structure and Learning Logic

The book is structured in a clear academic sequence. It begins with commercialization and corporate power in earth orbits. It then maps the research landscape around global commons, space governance, and power. The next chapters build the theoretical framework, moving from state power to corporate space power and then to the two faces of corporate power: structural and infrastructural power. The method chapter explains operationalization and data. The empirical chapters analyze membership and sponsorship networks, identify central actors, examine the “old core” of space power, and then turn to the case of Starlink. The book ends with a synthesis and outlook.

This sequence is useful because it moves from theory to measurement and then to findings. The reader first learns why power in earth orbits matters, then how it can be measured, and finally what the data shows.

Main Themes / Core Content

The first major theme is the commercialization of earth orbits. The book argues that access to and use of earth orbits are no longer dominated only by states. Companies, international organizations, civil society actors, and other non-state actors now interact in a growing orbital landscape. Commercialization has made Low Earth Orbits especially important because satellite constellations support internet connectivity, crisis response, smart farming, autonomous systems, and other terrestrial applications.

The second major theme is the critique of the “New Space” narrative. The author does not deny that new actors and new infrastructures matter. Instead, the book argues that the story of a fully new, democratized space era is incomplete. Network analysis reveals that old and established corporate space actors remain structurally powerful. Many of these actors are located in the Global North and have roots in the military-defense sector.

The third theme is structural power. The book uses membership and sponsorship ties to show how actors become central in networks. Shared membership can place actors in positions where they can circulate information, broker connections, or shape agendas. Sponsorship can create asymmetric relationships, especially between for-profit actors and non-profit or civil society actors. The author builds a Space Actor Inventory of 2,016 space actors and analyzes membership and sponsorship networks to identify central positions.

The fourth theme is infrastructural power. This is explored through the Starlink case. Starlink matters because it represents a privately owned orbital infrastructure with technological capabilities, territorial reach, and effects on dependence and power. The book argues that control of satellite slots, coverage, and service availability can create new dependencies and vulnerabilities.

Visual Style and Evidence

The book contains strong visual and methodological evidence. The figure list includes diagrams on the three facets of corporate space power, operationalization of structural and infrastructural power, node positions in networks, centrality measures, actor distributions, geographic distributions, membership and sponsorship networks, and active or filed satellites by corporate actors in Low Earth Orbits. These figures matter because they show that the book is not only theoretical; it provides empirical network mapping and visual analysis.

Important visual evidence includes Figure 1 on the three facets of corporate space power, Figure 2 on operationalization, Figures 16–29 on membership and sponsorship network centrality, and Figure 32 on active and filed satellites by corporate space actors in LEOs. For potential buyers, this signals that the book is data-driven and methodologically serious, not merely speculative commentary about SpaceX or space capitalism.

Strengths

The greatest strength of the book is conceptual originality. The distinction between structural and infrastructural power gives readers a useful way to understand corporate influence beyond simple measures such as revenue, number of satellites, or public visibility.

A second strength is empirical grounding. The study uses an original dataset of 2,016 space actors, membership ties, sponsorship ties, interviews, and a Starlink case study. This gives the argument more weight than a purely theoretical essay.

A third strength is its critique of surface-level “New Space” thinking. The book shows that public attention to new entrepreneurs can obscure older, quieter, and deeply embedded power structures. This is especially important for governance debates because future rules may be shaped by actors that are not always the most visible in public discourse.

Weaknesses or Limits

The main limitation is accessibility. The book is academic and concept-heavy. Readers without background in international relations or political science may need time to adjust to the vocabulary of structural power, infrastructural power, global commons, centrality, network brokerage, and governance asymmetries.

A second limit is that the empirical snapshot is time-bound. The space sector changes very quickly, and the author herself notes the turbulence of empirical reality in the field. The analysis remains valuable, but readers should treat it as a rigorous snapshot rather than a final map of a stable sector.

Unusual or Distinctive Points

The most distinctive point is the claim that “New Space” may be new infrastructurally but not necessarily structurally. Old actors continue to dominate networks, while newer actors may challenge power through infrastructures. This means that space power is not only about who launches satellites, but also about who occupies central positions in governance-related networks and who controls critical orbital systems.

Another distinctive point is the phrase-like argument that “new rules need new actors.” The book suggests that governance reform cannot simply write new rules for a changing space sector; it must also address who participates in rule-making and whose power becomes embedded in future institutions.

What the Reader Actually Gains

The reader gains a sophisticated framework for understanding corporate influence in earth orbit governance. Instead of asking only which company has the most satellites, the book encourages readers to ask: Who is central in membership networks? Who sponsors whom? Who connects civil society, industry, and governance spaces? Who controls infrastructures that others depend on? Who benefits if future rules preserve current asymmetries?

For policy readers, the book offers a warning: emerging governance mechanisms can reproduce inequalities if power asymmetries are not recognized early. For academic readers, it offers a conceptual and methodological toolkit. For readers interested in SpaceX and Starlink, it provides a way to understand Starlink not merely as a technical system, but as a form of corporate infrastructural power.

Final Judgment

Corporate Space Power is a strong academic monograph for readers interested in space governance, corporate power, global commons, and infrastructural politics. Its best use is not as a beginner’s guide to the space industry, but as a serious study of how corporate actors shape emerging governance systems. The book’s central value lies in making hidden power visible: old space actors remain structurally powerful, while new infrastructural actors such as Starlink can create new dependencies and vulnerabilities.

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