Iridium Communications Inc. (NASDAQ:IRDM) announced today that
COMSAT, Inc., has signed an agreement to become an Iridium
Certus service provider for U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) users.
This unique, long-term deal will allow COMSAT Inc. to provide
Iridium’s secure global satellite broadband connectivity for mobile
voice and data services to the Department of Defense (DoD)
beginning in mid-2018.
COMSAT, Inc., a leader in delivering world-class, secure
satellite solutions to government, military and maritime customers,
will bring its full suite of value-added services to the Iridium
Certus program. By leveraging the inherent advantages of the
Iridium® network, like truly global, on-the-move L-band
connectivity, COMSAT will be able to deliver enhanced capabilities
that meet Communications Security (ComSec) requirements for the DoD
and warfighter. These capabilities include, but are not limited to,
real-time usage statistics, telematics data, voice calling,
personnel tracking applications, and real-time environmental
assessments. The Iridium Certus service will offer dramatic
improvements to current L-band services offered by other satellite
companies. Iridium Certus terminals are smaller and capable
of maintaining broadband connectivity in fast-paced, unpredictable
environments on land, at sea, in the air – and can do it without
landing or passing through non-U.S. territories. The service
will debut at speeds of 352 Kbps, with terminals upgradable to 704
Kbps through a future firmware update.
“This is a new generation of technology that will keep users
connected on-the-move, combining the robustness and reliability of
the Iridium network with the value-added services and years of
experience provided by COMSAT,” said David Greenhill, president of
COMSAT. “U.S. government users will experience a new level of
mission-critical mobile capabilities thanks to this
partnership. We’re excited to bring this new service to
them.”
Whether in high-risk combat zones or during inclement weather
events, Iridium’s network provides uncompromised satellite
communications that keeps users connected when it’s needed most.
Through the service, U.S. government users will be able to securely
connect remote assets to respective command and control centers
back on U.S. soil in a cost-effective and secure manner, from
anywhere on the planet including Arctic and Antarctic regions.
“Iridium and the DoD have maintained a longstanding and
collaborative partnership through our Enhanced Mobile Satellite
Services (EMSS) contract, and we believe Iridium Certus complements
this perfectly by bringing never-before-possible, mission-critical
broadband capabilities to the warfighter,” said Matt Desch, CEO,
Iridium. “We’re excited to partner with COMSAT, who brings
innovation and a broad portfolio of capabilities to the table, and
we look forward to working together for many years to come.”
Iridium Certus is planned for commercial availability in
mid-2018. Iridium NEXT is the Company’s next-generation satellite
constellation, which will replace its existing network. To
date, there have been four successful Iridium NEXT launches,
deploying more than half of the new constellation. Four additional
launches are planned for 2018.
For more information about Iridium Certus, please visit
https://www.iridium.com/company/industryleadership/iridiumcertus
For more information about COMSAT, Inc., please
visit http://www.comsat.com/
For more information about Iridium NEXT, please visit
www.IridiumNEXT.com
About COMSAT Inc.
COMSAT, Inc. is a leading operator of customized, secure
end-to-end satellite communications services. We deliver a full
portfolio of fixed satellite solutions (C-Band, Ku-Band, Ka-Band,
X-Band and UHF), mobile satellite solutions (Inmarsat, Thuraya and
Iridium) to aeronautical, land-mobile and maritime users in
multiple markets, including U.S. government and military, global
governments, educational
institutions and commercial maritime. COMSAT owns and operates
two teleports located in Southbury, CT and Santa Paula, CA that
provide various teleport and data center services to commercial,
government and educational institutions world-wide including end to
end connectivity, co-location and research efforts, critical data
backup and recovery, satellite and terrestrial network data center,
cloud and cybersecurity services.
About Iridium Communications Inc.
Iridium is the only mobile voice and data satellite
communications network that spans the entire globe. Iridium enables
connections between people, organizations and assets to and from
anywhere, in real time. Together with its ecosystem of partner
companies, Iridium delivers an innovative and rich portfolio of
reliable solutions for markets that require truly global
communications. The company has a major development program
underway for its next-generation network — Iridium NEXT. Iridium
Communications Inc. is headquartered in McLean, Va., U.S.A., and
its common stock trades on the NASDAQ Global Select Market under
the ticker symbol IRDM. For more information about Iridium
products, services and partner solutions,
visit www.iridium.com.
Forward Looking Statements
Statements in this press release that are not purely historical
facts may constitute forward-looking statements as defined in the
Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. The Company has
based these statements on its current expectations and the
information currently available to us. Forward-looking statements
in this press release include statements regarding the deployment
and capabilities of the Iridium NEXT constellation and products and
services to be offered over the constellation, including Iridium
Certus, as well as the potential market for such products and
services. Forward-looking statements can be identified by the words
“anticipates,” “may,” “can,” “believes,” “expects,” “projects,”
“intends,” “likely,” “will,” “to be” and other expressions that are
predictions or indicate future events, trends or prospects. These
forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks,
uncertainties and other factors that may cause the actual results,
performance or achievements of Iridium to differ materially from
any future results, performance or achievements expressed or
implied by such forward-looking statements. These risks and
uncertainties include, but are not limited to, uncertainties
regarding potential delays in the Iridium NEXT deployment, the
development and functionality of Iridium NEXT and related products
and services, and the company’s ability to maintain the health,
capacity and content of its satellite constellation, as well as
general industry and economic conditions, and competitive, legal,
governmental and technological factors. Other factors that could
cause actual results to differ materially from those indicated by
the forward-looking statements include those factors listed under
the caption “Risk Factors” in the Company’s Form 10-K for the year
ended December 31, 2016, filed with the Securities and Exchange
Commission (the “SEC”) on February 23, 2017, as well as other
filings Iridium makes with the SEC from time to time. There is no
assurance that Iridium’s expectations will be realized. If one or
more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or if Iridium's
underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary
materially from those expected, estimated or projected. Iridium's
forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this press
release, and Iridium undertakes no obligation to update
forward-looking statements.
Press Contact:
Jordan HassinIridium Communications Inc.+1 (646)
872-0067Jordan.Hassin@iridium.comTwitter: @IridiumComm
Investor Contact:
Kenneth LevyIridium Communications Inc.+1 (703)
287-7570Ken.Levy@iridium.comTwitter: @IridiumIR
Iridium Communications (NASDAQ:IRDM)
Historical Stock Chart
From Mar 2024 to Apr 2024
Iridium Communications (NASDAQ:IRDM)
Historical Stock Chart
From Apr 2023 to Apr 2024