There’s a new comsat scheduled to serve the pan-African market, thanks to an agreement signed between Arianespace and Thales Alenia Space. The Service & Solutions contract is for Rascom-QAF 1R, which is planned for a launch in 2010 from Europe’s Spaceport in French Guiana aboard a Soyuz or Ariane 5 rocket. This new comsat is part of a turnkey contract with the Regional African Satellite Communication Organization by Thales Alenia Space, with the goal of providing telecom services to rural areas of Africa over 15 years.
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atrexx has completed major contracts for the provision of satellite communications to European suppliers in the Libyan oil and gas industry. The dedicated, IP-based Virtual Private Network (VPN) will be used to provide communications to remote exploration sites and to drilling teams based in the region, which has experienced significant growth as a result of the lifting of an eleven-year UN economic and military embargo. Interest in the region has heightened due to the, as yet, unexplored areas of Libya, where oil may potentially be identified and the presence of foreign — mainly European — companies and investors is promising a positive future. One center of the company’s activities is based at Marsa El Brega, the gateway to the desert oil fields and the main refining and petrochemical centre in Libya. The solution boasts dedicated bandwidth services into the desert using the iDirect 5100 service modems, enabling iSCPC STORY LINKs to be implemented. The global 2way2sat IP-based solution enables the provision of ubiquitous IP-based voice, data, and video services to businesses at almost any location worldwide.
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It pays to cooperate is the mantra for C2SAT who has signed a frame agreement with Seanet Maritime Communications AB for the delivery of 60 stabilized VSAT antenna systems. Initially, two antennas will be delivered to Seanet for immediate test installation on ships. Seanet recently announced the company will focus on maritime GSM services, and decided to cancel their antenna project C-Max. C2SAT will take over some equipment from Seanet’s discontinued antenna project.
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China has successfully launched a Venezuelan telecommunication satellite into space. This is China’s first manufacturing contract as well as a launch for a Latin American country. A Long March 3II rocket carried the Venezuelan comsat into space from the launch pad at the Xichang Satellite Launch Center, southwest China’s Sichuan Province, on October 30, 2008. The satellite was produced by China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation with an all-up weight of 5,100 kg and an expected lifetime of 15 years and is based on the DFH-4 bus. The satellite is called Venezuela-1 and is also known as Simon Bolivar Satellite or by the official United Nations designation, VENESAT-1.
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Comtech Telecommunications Corp.’s Arizona-based subsidiary, Comtech EF Data Corp., has received three orders totaling $6.2 million for satellite communications equipment. Two Asian operators and one Middle Eastern operator will use this equipment to support and expand their satellite-based cellular backhaul networks using Comtech’s CDM-625 satmodem equipment. While the orders specify a range of different products, the anchor product for all three orders is the CDM-625 Advanced Satellite Modem with DoubleTalk Carrier-in-Carrier.
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Satellite TV service provider DIRECTV has launched History en espanol on DIRECTV Mas, DIRECTV’s Spanish and English-language programming service. History en espanol combines programming from the U.S. and Latin America highlighting Hispanic culture in Spanish, 24-hours a day. The addition to DIRECTV Mas now makes History en espanol available on all major distributors and brings the network’s rich historically based programming to Hispanic customers nationwide.
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GlowSTORY LINK has won a competitive contract award from Turksat A.S. for geolocation and carrier monitoring equipment. Under the contract, GlowSTORY LINK will deliver, install, and conduct training for the company’s Model 8000 and Model 1000 systems at Turksat’s facilities in Ankara, Turkey. The Model 8000 is a compact, state-of-the-art geolocation system—the industry’s first such system to have built-in interference detection and analysis features essential for the fast, accurate, and effective geo-location of interference transmitters.
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Honduras’ office of the UNDAC (the United Nations Disaster Assessment and Coordination) requested Télécoms Sans Frontières’ (TSF) support after devastating rains killed at least 24 people — thousands have been evacuated after several days of heavy rain leading to mudslides and floods. According to the government, more than 200,000 have been affected, 25,000 have been left homeless, and eight people are missing. The President of Honduras, Manuel Zelaya, declared a state of emergency throughout the country and requested international assistance. UNDAC requested TSF install Emergency Communications Centers for the United Nations and to provide technical assistance to facilitate aid coordination and enable relief organizations to communicate from the most remote affected areas.
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The United Arab Emirates is encouraging Arab and North African countries to participate in the efforts to set up an Arab space agency (ASA), Dr. Omar Al Emam, Advisor, Arab Science and Technology Foundation told the Khaleej Times. Satellite technology can boost the efforts of governments to enhance the studies on environment, geology, aerospace and pollution and it can also be used for security purposes. Some of the Arab states, Dr. Omar said, have independent space programs and they use satellite technology quite often.
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MARKET FOCUS: JSAT MOBILE
Stratos has established a joint venture company with satellite operator SKY Perfect JSAT Corporation. The JV was designed to serve the mobile satellite services (MSS) needs of Japanese businesses and government agencies. SKY Perfect JSAT is Japan’s first private-sector satellite operator and has become the largest operator in the Asia-Pacific region, with 12 satellites.

The new company, called JSAT MOBILE Communications Inc. (JSAT MOBILE), combines Stratos’ portfolio of Inmarsat and Iridium services with SKY Perfect JSAT’s vast support infrastructure and Japanese market expertise. The Stratos portfolio includes a wide range of value-added services to help customers achieve optimal communications performance and cost efficiency.

JSAT MOBILE builds upon the Japanese market success Stratos has enjoyed over the past seven years. The new joint venture also makes it easy to bring high-performance, L-band MSS to SKY Perfect JSAT’s extensive customer base, which has depended upon SKY Perfect JSAT for C-band and Ku-band services.

As part of its broad solution offering, JSAT MOBILE will provide MSS powered by the last generation of Inmarsat I-4 satellites. Those services are expected to be available worldwide, including full service capabilities in Japan and the Asia-Pacific region, starting on March 1, 2009.

The Inmarsat I-4 F3 satellite was successfully launched on August 19th. Once tested and operational, the I-4 F3 will form a complete constellation (together with its two sister satellites that are already in orbit) to deliver full and seamless global coverage of all the latest Inmarsat broadband mobile satellite services. Those services include BGAN, FleetBroadband, and SwiftBroadband.

In recent years, it has been easy to detect a growing demand for MSS in the Japanese market. In fact, Stratos expects the market for MSS services in Japan to continue to expand over the next five years, thanks to especially high demand for MSS applications that support the growing Japanese maritime industry.

The 2007 introduction of Inmarsat’s FleetBroadband service was met with enthusiasm from Japanese ship owners and ship managers who are constantly searching for faster, more reliable, and more economical data and voice communications to help recruit and retain well-trained seafarers. FleetBroadband demonstrates Inmarsat’s ability to keep pace with rapidly evolving maritime communications requirements. It is the maritime version of Inmarsat’s successful Broadband Global Area Network (BGAN) service. (Since its introduction to the Japanese and worldwide markets in late 2005, BGAN has been widely adopted for land-mobile applications by military and NGO agencies, media organizations, first responders, and professionals in numerous industries.)

To ensure they are receiving optimal communications performance and cost efficiency from FleetBroadband, Japanese ship owners and managers can now turn to JSAT MOBILE. As the largest MSS provider to the maritime industry, Stratos provides communications services to more than 40,000 maritime terminals worldwide.

FleetBroadband provides cost-effective, high-speed data and voice communications – available simultaneously – at speeds up to 432kpbs. It also provides on-demand guaranteed IP data rates, regardless of the vessel’s location. The above-deck, stabilized, compact directional antennas are smaller than most existing Inmarsat Fleet products used today.

FleetBroadband from Stratos represents an extension of Stratos’ broadband maritime portfolio, which is designed to improve crew calling and business productivity.

JSAT MOBILE also expects to capitalize on strong demand for the newest aviation MSS solution, Inmarsat’s SwiftBroadband. SwiftBroadband is the first network delivering high-speed mobile data services to aeronautical customers. With global coverage delivered via fully integrated aeronautical systems, SwiftBroadband services will provide access to email, Internet, and corporate networks. JSAT MOBILE will offer Japanese government and commercial users terminal management, traffic control and security services, bringing a new level of communications to the cockpit and cabin.

JSAT MOBILE has already started offering mobile satellite services to end users that operate internationally. By the first quarter of 2009, JSAT MOBILE expects to receive all necessary regulatory approvals to provide its MSS portfolio for use in Japan and on Japanese-registered vessels and aircrafts.< br />
In JSAT MOBILE, Japanese businesses will find a large local team that is intimately familiar with their requirements. It will combine a dedication to the Japanese market with a strong sales and support network to ensure all MSS solutions are deployed quickly and cost efficiently.

Officials of Stratos and SKY Perfect JSAT Corp. are confident the new JSAT MOBILE joint venture will accomplish their carefully crafted mission — the successful delivery of high-performance MSS to the growing Japanese market.