Iridium sets up shop in Iraq

Daily Newsletters

Sign up to ZDNet UK's daily newsletter.

NEWS
Satellite-phone company Iridium said on Monday it has been granted the right to sell its services in Iraq, where conventional telephone services have been severely damaged as a result of the war. Iridium already has a significant presence in Iraq as a result of a deal with the US Department of Defense initiated in 2000. Under that deal, renewed in December, the US military pays $36m (£23m) a year for unlimited access to Iridium's network, which allows voice or data transmissions from almost anywhere in the world. Satellite phones are seeing increasing government and commercial usage in areas where no conventional telecommunications infrastructure is available, partly due to drastic price cuts by operators. Iridium and competitors such as Globalstar target the government, forestry, maritime, oil and mining industries. The US military, which supplies 20,000 government workers with Iridium services, is still Iridium's largest customer, although the company said large civilian contracts are a growing part of its business. Monday's authorisation by the office of the Coalition Provisional Authority, which currently holds governing authority over Iraq, and the Ministry of Transportation and Communications means that Iridium can also sell its equipment and services commercially in the region. "While Iridium has experienced great success with its Department of Defense usage within the region, we are extremely pleased to have received this authorisation and to be able to provide the much-needed communications services that Iridium has to offer to the commercial sector," said Iridium president and chief executive Gino Picasso in a statement. Iridium rival Globalstar has also offered satellite-phone service in Iraq since mid-April and said it expects usage to rise dramatically with the end of fighting -- as it has done in Afghanistan, where combat ended in early 2002. Globalstar said that usage in Afghanistan and the surrounding regions is now more than double the average level of 2002. Globalstar said it had 84,000 subscribers worldwide at the end of March, and said it now has more than 90,000. Both companies have gone through a bankruptcy process and emerged with more attractive service offerings -- having cut call rates to below $1 per minute and reduced prices on handsets. Iridium's new owners took control of the company after its 1999 bankruptcy, and the Department of Defense deal was crucial in salvaging the carrier's finances. Globalstar is in the midst of its own restructuring. ICO Global Communications, chaired by mobile-industry billionaire Craig McCaw, earlier this year received UK court approval to take a majority stake in Globalstar in exchange for a $55m investment. The deal is scheduled for completion this autumn.
If it moves, we cover it. See ZDNet UK's Mobile Technology News Section for the latest news, reviews and price checks on mobile phones, PDAs, notebook computers and anything else you can take away. Let the editors know what you think in the Mailroom.

Post your comment

In order to post a comment you need to be registered and logged in.

You can also log in with Facebook. Log in or create your ZDNet UK account below

  • Login

Will not be displayed with your comment

By signing up for this service, you indicate that you agree to our Terms and Conditions and have read and understood our Privacy Policy. Questions about membership? Find the answers in the Community FAQ

Get ZDNet UK's daily newsletter

Enter your email address to sign up

ZDNet UK Live

Moley

@GrueMaster. I prefer horses for courses rather than one size fits all. I, and I suspect most other computer users, do not really wish to have...

48 minutes ago by Moley on A tale of two distros: Ubuntu and Linux Mint
greycynic

The product that scares me every time I have to use it is the Office 2007 version of Excel. The first bug that I found was applying the median...

51 minutes ago by greycynic on Ten flawed products that derail productivity
GrueMaster

Nice review and very informative. One thing I'd like to add (in reply to whs001's 1st question), the main reason to have the same interface from...

2 hours ago by GrueMaster on A tale of two distros: Ubuntu and Linux Mint
Frederick Wrigley

I'be been using Mint 12 since the RC came out, and I am far more happy with the Cinnamon, the Mate, and, yes (with extensions), theGnome 3...

3 hours ago by Frederick Wrigley via Facebook on A tale of two distros: Ubuntu and Linux Mint
bdantas

Excellent article. One small correction, though--although a fresh installation of Linux Mint 12 will, indeed, provide the user with a version of...

4 hours ago by bdantas on A tale of two distros: Ubuntu and Linux Mint
Alan Ralph

In related news, the ISPs club together to get the members of the Home Affairs Select Committee (ya goofed on that part, ZDNet UK) copies of "The...

4 hours ago by Alan Ralph via Facebook on MPs urge ISPs to take down terrorist material
Alan Ralph

In related news, the ISPs club together to get the members of the Home Affairs Select Committee (ya goofed on that part, ZDNet UK) copies of "The...

4 hours ago by Alan Ralph via Facebook on MPs urge ISPs to take down terrorist material
Moley

For Gnome 2 die-hards, it is possible to add icons to the bottom panel (or top top panel, if you prefer) which provide the exact Gnome 2...

5 hours ago by Moley on A tale of two distros: Ubuntu and Linux Mint
ramwellian

Your comments would seem pretty naive and immature. Your 'solution' appears to be, "gee, let's all just give in to the hackers and give them...

5 hours ago by ramwellian on Cloud computing security: no more oxymoron?
BugStalker

"Interesting thought ... If you installed Win7 as a dual boot on a machine that previously only had Linux, and it wrecked your Linux installation,...

6 hours ago by BugStalker on Windows 7 Declares War on GRUB
whs001

This is an excellent summary of Ubuntu and Mint and the interface differences between them. Most such articles take a very partisan position for...

6 hours ago by whs001 on A tale of two distros: Ubuntu and Linux Mint
Moley

@ewallace. Not so clear. Anyone can obtain the text, for example from here http://www.ustr.gov/webfm_send/2379. I support ACTA so long as it and...

6 hours ago by Moley on ACTA: Facts, misconceptions and questions
45283

I think WinRT is fantastic. I just wish it was an option for people that didn't want to go through Microsoft's App Store with its attendant...

9 hours ago by 45283 on Why Windows 8 needs architectural hygiene for WOA
Burn-IT

Nine people? £30m? Who's back pocket is that lot going in? And IF they say it is for new buildings, what about all the ones the government has...

10 hours ago by Burn-IT on Police set to launch three £30m e-crime hubs
ewallace

Just to be clear, nobody knows what is in the text of ACTA, here is a photograph of the text of ACTA http://twitpic.com/8h9iju as submitted to the...

10 hours ago by ewallace on ACTA: Facts, misconceptions and questions
fgvrg56

Unfortunately main issue is that ASUS is refusing to accept that they make some mistake on this version of asus Transformer prime. 1 - GPS sensor...

12 hours ago by fgvrg56 on Asus Eee Pad Transformer Prime Wi-Fi & GPS problems?
Ben Woods

@Marcus A fair question. Just talked with Archos which said it was working on an announcement for next week....

13 hours ago by Ben Woods on Archos confirms G9 Ice Cream Sandwich update schedule
Marcus Karlsson

Any update on this, considering the claimed "first week of February"?

14 hours ago by Marcus Karlsson via Facebook on Archos confirms G9 Ice Cream Sandwich update schedule
apexwm

Bill Goodrich : Just as al_langevin pointed out, with Windows Server 2008 there is no Services for Macintosh anymore. It's gone, not available....

22 hours ago by apexwm on Windows Server 2008 drops the ball for Mac compatibility
txtrainguy

Replying to an old topic that I'm currently facing with my CEO (who is on a Mac). Our servers are primarily Windows Servers, office is about...

1 day ago by txtrainguy on Windows Server 2008 drops the ball for Mac compatibility