LYCOS RETRIEVER 
Iridium: Iridium Satellite
built 661 days ago
Iridium Satellite LLC (http://www.iridium.com/) is the only provider of truly global satellite voice and data solutions with complete coverage of the earth (including oceans, airways and Polar Regions). Iridium delivers essential communications services to and from remote areas where no other form of communication is available. Iridium makes this possible through its constellation of 66 low-earth orbiting (LEO), cross-linked satellites. The company ... has 13 spare satellites in-orbit. The Iridium service is ideally suited for industries such as maritime, aviation, government/military, emergency/humanitarian services, mining, forestry, oil and gas, and heavy construction. Iridium provides service to the U.S. Department of Defense, and sells equipment and services through 44 service providers.
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Iridium Satellite LLC is the only provider of truly global mobile satellite voice and data solutions with complete coverage of the Earth (including oceans, airways and Polar Regions). Through a constellation of 66 low-earth orbiting (LEO) satellites operated by The Boeing Company, Iridium delivers essential communications services to and from remote areas where no other form of communication is available. The service is ideally suited for industrial applications such as heavy construction, defence/military, emergency services, maritime, mining, forestry, oil & gas and aviation. Iridium currently provides service to the U.S. Department of Defence under a multi-year contract. Commercial service, sold through a network of 15 service providers, was launched on March 30, 2001. For more information, please visit www.iridium.com or call 866-947-4348 (in the U.S.); +1 480-752-5155 (internationally).
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Iridium Satellite LLC claims to have 203,000 subscribers as of June 30, 2007, an 11% increase from the total by the end of the first quarter 2007. Revenue for the second quarter of 2007 was $66.7 million with EBITDA of $20.2 million. Revenue in 2006 was $212.4 million and EBITDA was $53.9 million.
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The initial commercial failure of Iridium has had a dampening effect on other proposed commercial satellite constellation projects, including Teledesic. Other schemes (Orbcomm, ICO Global Communications, and Globalstar) followed Iridium into bankruptcy protection, while a number of proposed schemes were never constructed.
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Iridium and Raytheon's JPS Communications announced an initiative to provide first responders a fully interoperable communications service for use in disasters. The effort gives customers access to Iridium services packaged with the JPS ACU product line, including the ACU-1000, which can interconnect up to 24 communications devices at one time. Interconnected devices can include those based on satellite communications, radio, cellular and land- based networks. First responders can now use Iridium and the ACU to keep connected no matter how badly natural or manmade disaster affects a surrounding area or telecommunications infrastructure. Also, Iridium service provider AirCell, Inc., in conjunction with MedAire, Inc., launched a service that offers in-flight, on-demand medical assistance from ground-based health experts through the Iridium satellite network.
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Iridium Satellite LLC (www.iridium.com) is the only mobile satellite service (MSS) offering gap-free, pole-to-pole coverage over the entire globe. Iridium's constellation of 66 low-earth orbiting (LEO), cross-linked satellites (and multiple in-orbit spares) provides critical voice and data services for regions not served by other communication networks. Driven by increasing demand for reliable, secure, global, mobile satellite links, Iridium has been steadily growing at a double-digit annual rate since 2004. Iridium serves commercial markets through a worldwide network of more than 150 partners, and ... provides services to the U.S. Department of Defense, and other U.S. and international government agencies. The company's 250,000 users are in the maritime, aeronautical, government/defense, public safety, utilities, oil/gas, mining, forestry, heavy equipment and transportation industries. Iridium has launched a major development program for its next- generation satellite constellation, called "NEXT," through which it will enable satellite-based innovations beyond communications.
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