New Technology Brings African Nations Together

For the first time ever, an operational satellite phone call was made from the African continent using the Inmarsat network. Zambian Colonel Wilson Tembo, African Union delegation chief, made an international call from the Ghana Armed Forces Command and Staff College during Africa Endeavor (AE) 2010 in Accra on August 10, 2010. This call showcased the technology and ease of use of this new product.
 

 
"This was a significant moment for Imarsat. AE 2010 allowed us to demonstrate to more than 30 African nations the outstanding voice quality in a call to a cellular phone over our satellite network," said Steff Taylor, Inmarsat business development manager. "It proved the capability and applicability of the product that can now be used by African nations anywhere on the continent."
 
Inmarsat launched the IsatPhone Pro, which was used to make the call, in June 2010, and it was built for the Inmarsat network.
 
This is the first time Inmarsat has participated in Africa Endeavor and the company is providing equipment to the exercise and training to country delegates pro bono.
 
According to Taylor, the participation is part of the outreach that the company does and the exercise was an excellent opportunity to reach the African audience. This is one of many outreach projects the company does, providing free equipment and financial support to restore communications in disaster zones.
 
Throughout the exercise, Inmarsat representatives will be providing training to participants on satellite phones, as well as voice and data capability. There will be an opportunity to do real-time demonstrations of satellite communications during the second week of AE 2010.
 
One of the purposes of AE 2010 is to promote interoperability among the African nations, and this training and equipment at the exercise enables ease of communication.
 
Inmarsat has a current fleet of 11 satellites that provides seamless mobile voice and data communications around the world. Inmarsat enables users to make phone calls or connect to the internet whenever and wherever they need - on land, at sea or in the air.
 

Diverse Industrial Applications Drive the World Satellite Machine-to-Machine Communications Market

Worldwide, wireless, wireline, and satellite networks developed significantly in the last twenty years, setting the stage for machine-to-machine (M2M) applications and equipment to utilize these existing networks. Used for logistical tracking, telemetry, remote monitoring, geo fencing, security, and scientific monitoring, M2M communications provide benefits for industries ranging from agriculture to retail, driving the satellite M2M industry over the next five to seven years.
 

 
The world satellite M2M communications market is currently experiencing exponential growth, as companies seek to raise productivity while reducing costs. M2M hardware and equipment have continuously reduced in both size and cost in the last five years.
 
New analysis from Frost & Sullivan, World Satellite Machine-to-Machine Communications Market, finds that the market earned revenues of $726 million in 2009 and estimates this to reach $1.90 billion in 2016. The United States dominates the world satellite M2M communications market, with 62 percent market share since its enterprises have the capital to implement M2M. The Asia-Pacific region is expected to experience maximum growth in terms of regional share in the long term.
 
If you are interested in more information on this study, please send an e-mail to Jake Wengroff, Corporate Communications, at jake.wengroff@frost.com, with your full name, company name, title, telephone number, company e-mail address, company website, city, state, and country.
 
Globally, there are over one billion personal computers, four billion wireless phones, and one billion wireline phones in service. There are only about one hundred million dedicated M2M devices in service, but reversing those numbers would be ideal for the long term. However, the escalating costs of bandwidth and equipment will restrain market growth in the short term. Satellite hardware and airtime are substantially more expensive than that of their terrestrial counterparts.
 
"The average revenue per user among cellular operators is in the range of $6 to $7 per month, whereas satellite companies are in the $24 per month range," explains Longfield. "Additionally, hardware prices for satellite M2M equipment range from $74 to $3,200."
 
As hardware sales grow, economies of scale will develop and contribute to reductions in unit prices for M2M equipment. As prices fall for M2M equipment, more opportunities will materialize in the vertical markets.