The expansion of the satellite industry into new orbits (namely low earth orbit or LEO) and new use cases, such as IoT, are driving rising valuations and resulting mergers, as well as a keener interest in cooperation with 5G operators. The latest potential deal in the busy LEO space is between OneWeb and French satellite firm Eutelsat. The two are engaged in talks about a stock-only deal to create a 50:50 joint venture, which would combine Eutelsat’s geostationary orbit (GEO) satellite fleet with OneWeb’s LEO activities. That would expand the former’s range of services by including LEO, with its lower latency and cost compared to GEO, while helping the latter to bulk up to compete with LEO start-ups such as…