KeyOn: No Broadband Stimulus Money in First Round
TMCnet
KeyOn announced that it was notified by the Rural Utilities Service that its applications under the Broadband Initiatives Program of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 were not awarded. Despite the fact that all 11 of KeyOn’s applications had advanced to the due diligence phase in Round One, the RUS did not advance [...]
Mexican Satellite Operator Satmex Acquired by Echostar For $374 Million
TMCnet News
Established in the mid 1980s as part of a government operation before becoming a commercial organization, Satmex owns and operates three satellites and two satellite uplink facilities, and has approximately 200 employees, which are all included as part of the transaction.
Topics: telecom, Mexico, SatMex, broadband, ATM, USA, United States, Unified Technologies Group, satellite
Inmarsat’s SwiftBroadband Success Continues
TMCnet News
Inmarsat, the leading provider of global mobile satellite communications services, has announced that there are now more than 400 SwiftBroadband channels activated on aircraft operating worldwide. The achievement makes SwiftBroadband the fastest growing aeronautical service in Inmarsat’s history.
Topics: United States, cellular, broadband, telecom, satellite
Solar Outages Could Disrupt Alaska Phone Service
Tundra Drums
Blame the sun if your phone goes out next month. GCI warns that a celestial line-up of earth, satellite and sun could briefly fuzz out telecommunications services in much of Alaska.
Topics: Alaska, telecommunications, outage, telecom, satellite
Spacecom to Launch Temporary Satellite
TMCnet News
Spacecom Satellite Communications Ltd. (TASE:SCC) is reconfiguring the Amos 6 communications satellite to handle broadband Internet. Spacecom president and CEO David Pollack said that the company planned to target emerging markets that have no ground infrastructure, and where satellite communications can offer a fast and effective solution.
Topics: satellite, telecom, United States, broadband
China Unicom Deploys Gilat’s Satellite-Based Cellular Backhaul Solution
TMCnet News
Gilat Satellite Networks Ltd. (Nasdaq:GILT) today announced that China Unicom is deploying Gilat’s SkyAbis cellular backhaul solution to enhance GSM mobile connectivity in China’s Xinjiang region.
Topics: cellular, telecom, satellite, China, United States
ESA Duel Telecom Satellites Now in Orbit
TMCnet News
JCSat-12 will operate in the Ku- and C-bands, providing broadcast and broadband services covering Japan, the Oceania and Asia-Pacific regions and Hawaii. Optus D3 will operate in the Ku-band, delivering direct-to-home TV broadcast, Internet, telephony and data transmission services for Australia and New Zealand.
Topics: Australia, United States, broadband, telecom, satellite
No Price Cut Soon, Just Faster Speeds, Internet Firms Say
TMCnet News
It was expected that with the switching on of the Seacom fibre-optic submarine cable connecting East Africa to the rest of the world, broadband speeds would improve and Internet costs would reduce at the same time. Consumers are already experiencing faster connectivity, but this is not applying to costs.
Topics: Africa, telecom, satellite, cellular, [...]
Qwest, DirecTV Extend Satellite TV Partnership
Wall Street Journal
Qwest Communications Inc. (Q) Tuesday agreed to sell DirecTV Group Inc. (DTV) satellite TV service to its customers for five more years as both look to stave off competition from the cable providers.
Topics: AT&T, telecom, Washington, Qwest, satellite, telecommunications, Verizon
Virgin and Vizada Partner to Provide Inmarsat BGAN and Iridium Services in Canada
TMCnet News
The two companies will partner to offer Inmarsat BGAN and Iridium satellite communications services to the Canadian market.
Topics: telecom, United States, telecommunications, voip, satellite, Canada, telephone
Hybrid Satellite-Cell Pocket Phone May Arrive This Year
PC World
Previous attempts to create a mass-market satellite phone may have failed miserably—just ask the backers of Globalstar, Iridium, and Odyssey—but a Virginia-based satellite firm believes it has a better solution that just may work this time.
Topics: 4G, telecommunications, satellite, 3G, wireless, handset, telecom, cellular, Vermont
Sky Apologizes for PSN Issues
Afterdawn.com
Sky Broadband has admitted and apologized for an error with their system that has been blocking UK users from accessing the PlayStation Network for the seven hour period of 5pm to midnight.
Topics: telecommunications, voip, satellite, telecom, Sky Broadband
Cell Phone Service For Mt. Everest? Because It’s There
InformationWeek, NY
“We are planning to commence the service by mid-June,” said Anoop Ranjan Bhattarai, NT’s satellite division chief, according to media reports from Kathmandu. “We hope it will provide an alternative to those currently relying on satellite phone services …
Topics: telecom, satellite, satellite phone, USA, wireless, telecommunications
Vippie Mobile Providing VoIP in Blocked Regions of the World
TMCnet
For several years now VoIP users in the United Arab Emirates have been fighting an uphill battle with telcos employing restrictive practices designed to cut them off from IP Telecommunication services.
Topics: voip, telecom, satellite, telecommunications, blocked, USA
Telcos, Satellite Join Cable's Push To Build Pay Wall On Web
Wall Street Journal
… that consumers will abandon the notion that everything online is free. “The consumer has shown they’re willing to pay reasonable money for added value,” Rodriguez said. “The consumer doesn’t expect cell-phone service to be free, or HBO to be free.”
Topics: telecommunications, USA, telecom, satellite
