Mobile Satellite Ventures
Encyclopedia
SkyTerra formerly Mobile Satellite Ventures (MSV or MSVLP), is a Reston, Virginia
company that develops telecommunications systems that integrate satellite
and terrestrial radio
communication technologies into one system. In March 2010, the company was acquired by Harbinger Capital Partners
and under the leadership of CEO Sanjiv Ahuja
became part of a new company called LightSquared
The company placed its first satellite, SkyTerra-1, in orbit on November 14, 2010.
National Market under the symbol "MTNT". MSV was formed by the integration of the spun-off satellite operations of Motient and TMI Communications and Company, L.P., a wholly owned subsidiary of BCE Inc. of Canada . The new company has operations in both America and Canada, providing service to both countries and the Caribbean. MSV changed its name to SkyTerra in December 2008. The company was traded Over-the-Counter and was listed on the OTCBB: SKYT. SkyTerra (formerly ‘Mobile Satellite Ventures’) was the first company to receive a Federal Communications Commission license to deploy Ancillary Terrestrial Component (ATC) technology.
In 2005, SkyTerra purchased 50% of Hughes Network Solutions, a subsidiary of the News Corp.-owned DirecTV Group, for $157.4 million, which SkyTerra held under its subsidiary Hughes Communications
. In January 2006, DirecTV sold its remaining 50% share in Hughes Network Solutions to SkyTerra for $100 million. Hughes Communications was spun off as a separate company in February 2006, with SkyTerra divesting its entire stake in the company to its shareholders.
TerreStar Corporation, formerly Motient Corporation, was the controlling shareholder of TerreStar Networks
Inc. and TerreStar Global Ltd., and a shareholder of SkyTerra Communications.
SkyTerra was acquired by Harbinger Capital Partners in March 2010 and became part of LightSquared in July 2010.
AMSC initially provided GEO
based satellite
services based on its MSAT
satellite.
are developing a satellite telephony network for consumers.
The use of Boeing's GeoMobile platform will allow for coverage of the entire United States with a single satellite. This new approach to satellite telephony has already been validated with the Thuraya
network. MSV's satellite will use an even bigger antenna than the Thuraya spacecraft (at 22 meters in diameter, it will be the largest commercial reflector dish ever used in space), allowing it to communicate with phones no larger than modern cell phones
thanks to the fact that the large antenna gain allows the handset to operate at a power output comparable to regular cell phones. This is now possible since the Federal Communications Commission
(FCC) allowed satellite operators to create terrestrial cellular networks using spectrum previously restricted to satellite use.
This means that phones can be compatible with both the upcoming MSV satphone network and local cellular networks, allowing a user to communicate over the regular cellular network, and only rely on the satellites in areas outside the range of cell towers
. MSV has earned patents around this set-up. It will be useful in sparsely populated areas where the construction of cell towers is not cost-effective, as well as to emergency-response services which must remain operational even when the local cellular network is out of service.
geostationary satellites MSAT-1 and MSAT-2.
The SkyTerra1 satellite, a 5,400 kg Boeing 702
, was successfully launched from Baikonur Cosmodrome
on November 14, 2010 by an ILS
Proton-M
booster. Expected service life of the satellite is 15 years.
The SkyTerra2 satellite is scheduled for delivery in 2011.
Reston, Virginia
Reston is a census-designated place in Fairfax County, Virginia, United States, within the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area. The population was 58,404, at the 2010 Census and 56,407 at the 2000 census...
company that develops telecommunications systems that integrate satellite
Satellite
In the context of spaceflight, a satellite is an object which has been placed into orbit by human endeavour. Such objects are sometimes called artificial satellites to distinguish them from natural satellites such as the Moon....
and terrestrial radio
Radio
Radio is the transmission of signals through free space by modulation of electromagnetic waves with frequencies below those of visible light. Electromagnetic radiation travels by means of oscillating electromagnetic fields that pass through the air and the vacuum of space...
communication technologies into one system. In March 2010, the company was acquired by Harbinger Capital Partners
Harbinger Capital
Harbinger Capital Partners is a private hedge fund based in New York City, New York.-Background:Harbinger was founded by its Senior Managing Director Philip Falcone and Harbert Management Corporation, a Birmingham, Alabama-based investment company that provided much of the original funding. Falcone...
and under the leadership of CEO Sanjiv Ahuja
Sanjiv Ahuja
Sanjiv Ahuja is currently Chairman and CEO of LightSquared a company that is developing a wholesale-only nationwide 4G LTE Long Term Evolution wireless broadband communications network integrated with satellite coverage. The company is the result of Harbinger Capital Partners acquisition in March,...
became part of a new company called LightSquared
LightSquared
LightSquared is a company that plans to develop a wholesale 4G LTE wireless broadband communications network integrated with satellite coverage across the United States.-History:...
The company placed its first satellite, SkyTerra-1, in orbit on November 14, 2010.
History
The Corporation was founded in 1988 as American Mobile Satellite Corporation. Its acquisition of ARDIS was completed on March 31, 1998. In April 2000, the company changed its name to Motient Corporation, with its stock traded on the NASDAQNASDAQ
The NASDAQ Stock Market, also known as the NASDAQ, is an American stock exchange. "NASDAQ" originally stood for "National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations". It is the second-largest stock exchange by market capitalization in the world, after the New York Stock Exchange. As of...
National Market under the symbol "MTNT". MSV was formed by the integration of the spun-off satellite operations of Motient and TMI Communications and Company, L.P., a wholly owned subsidiary of BCE Inc. of Canada . The new company has operations in both America and Canada, providing service to both countries and the Caribbean. MSV changed its name to SkyTerra in December 2008. The company was traded Over-the-Counter and was listed on the OTCBB: SKYT. SkyTerra (formerly ‘Mobile Satellite Ventures’) was the first company to receive a Federal Communications Commission license to deploy Ancillary Terrestrial Component (ATC) technology.
In 2005, SkyTerra purchased 50% of Hughes Network Solutions, a subsidiary of the News Corp.-owned DirecTV Group, for $157.4 million, which SkyTerra held under its subsidiary Hughes Communications
Hughes Communications
Hughes Communications is a provider of satellite-based communications services. The company operates its satellite business through its wholly owned subsidiary, HughesNet.In 2011, Hughes was acquired by EchoStar in a deal valued at US$1.3 billion....
. In January 2006, DirecTV sold its remaining 50% share in Hughes Network Solutions to SkyTerra for $100 million. Hughes Communications was spun off as a separate company in February 2006, with SkyTerra divesting its entire stake in the company to its shareholders.
TerreStar Corporation, formerly Motient Corporation, was the controlling shareholder of TerreStar Networks
TerreStar Networks
TerreStar Corporation , formerly Motient Corp. and American Mobile Satellite Corp. , was the controlling shareholder of TerreStar Networks Inc. and TerreStar Global Ltd., and a shareholder of SkyTerra Communications.TerreStar Networks was a Reston, Virginia-based company that operated integrated...
Inc. and TerreStar Global Ltd., and a shareholder of SkyTerra Communications.
SkyTerra was acquired by Harbinger Capital Partners in March 2010 and became part of LightSquared in July 2010.
AMSC initially provided GEO
Geosynchronous orbit
A geosynchronous orbit is an orbit around the Earth with an orbital period that matches the Earth's sidereal rotation period...
based satellite
Satellite
In the context of spaceflight, a satellite is an object which has been placed into orbit by human endeavour. Such objects are sometimes called artificial satellites to distinguish them from natural satellites such as the Moon....
services based on its MSAT
MSAT
MSAT, short for Mobile Satellite, is a satellite-based mobile telephony service developed by the National Research Council of Canada. Supported by a number of companies in the US and Canada, MSAT hosts a number of services, including the broadcast of CDGPS signals...
satellite.
- Elements of MSV were previously known as Motient.
- Elements of MSV were previously known as TMI Communications and Co.
- Motient was one of the founders of XM Satellite RadioXM Satellite RadioXM Satellite Radio is one of two satellite radio services in the United States and Canada, operated by Sirius XM Radio. It provides pay-for-service radio, analogous to cable television. Its service includes 73 different music channels, 39 news, sports, talk and entertainment channels, 21 regional...
.
MSV satellite telephony
Most of current products and services are aimed at emergency services, law enforcement, and companies that specialize in transportation. However, MSV and BoeingBoeing Satellite Development Center
The Boeing Satellite Development Center is a major business unit of Boeing Defense, Space & Security. It brought together Boeing satellite operations with that of GM Hughes Electronics' Space and Communications division.-History:...
are developing a satellite telephony network for consumers.
The use of Boeing's GeoMobile platform will allow for coverage of the entire United States with a single satellite. This new approach to satellite telephony has already been validated with the Thuraya
Thuraya
Thuraya , the Arabic name of the Pleiades, is a regional satellite phone provider. Its coverage area is most of Europe, the Middle East, North, Central and East Africa, Asia and Australia....
network. MSV's satellite will use an even bigger antenna than the Thuraya spacecraft (at 22 meters in diameter, it will be the largest commercial reflector dish ever used in space), allowing it to communicate with phones no larger than modern cell phones
Mobile phone
A mobile phone is a device which can make and receive telephone calls over a radio link whilst moving around a wide geographic area. It does so by connecting to a cellular network provided by a mobile network operator...
thanks to the fact that the large antenna gain allows the handset to operate at a power output comparable to regular cell phones. This is now possible since the Federal Communications Commission
Federal Communications Commission
The Federal Communications Commission is an independent agency of the United States government, created, Congressional statute , and with the majority of its commissioners appointed by the current President. The FCC works towards six goals in the areas of broadband, competition, the spectrum, the...
(FCC) allowed satellite operators to create terrestrial cellular networks using spectrum previously restricted to satellite use.
This means that phones can be compatible with both the upcoming MSV satphone network and local cellular networks, allowing a user to communicate over the regular cellular network, and only rely on the satellites in areas outside the range of cell towers
Cell site
A cell site is a term used to describe a site where antennas and electronic communications equipment are placed, usually on a radio mast, tower or other high place, to create a cell in a cellular network...
. MSV has earned patents around this set-up. It will be useful in sparsely populated areas where the construction of cell towers is not cost-effective, as well as to emergency-response services which must remain operational even when the local cellular network is out of service.
Satellites
The SkyTerra space segment consists of the MSATMSAT
MSAT, short for Mobile Satellite, is a satellite-based mobile telephony service developed by the National Research Council of Canada. Supported by a number of companies in the US and Canada, MSAT hosts a number of services, including the broadcast of CDGPS signals...
geostationary satellites MSAT-1 and MSAT-2.
The SkyTerra1 satellite, a 5,400 kg Boeing 702
Boeing 702
Boeing 702 is a communications satellite design. The Boeing Satellite Development Center tailors the payload of each Boeing 702 to meet customer specifications based on a modular design but with usually more than seventy transponders....
, was successfully launched from Baikonur Cosmodrome
Baikonur Cosmodrome
The Baikonur Cosmodrome , also called Tyuratam, is the world's first and largest operational space launch facility. It is located in the desert steppe of Kazakhstan, about east of the Aral Sea, north of the Syr Darya river, near Tyuratam railway station, at 90 meters above sea level...
on November 14, 2010 by an ILS
International Launch Services
International Launch Services is a U.S.-Russian joint venture with exclusive rights to the worldwide sale of commercial Proton rocket launch services from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.- Ownership :...
Proton-M
Proton-M
The Proton-M, GRAU index 8K82M or 8K82KM, is a Russian carrier rocket derived from the Soviet-developed Proton. It is built by Khrunichev, and launched from sites 81 and 200 at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. Commercial launches are marketed by International Launch Services , and generally...
booster. Expected service life of the satellite is 15 years.
The SkyTerra2 satellite is scheduled for delivery in 2011.
See also
- Globalstar
- ICO Global Communications
- Land Mobile Radio Service
- MSATMSATMSAT, short for Mobile Satellite, is a satellite-based mobile telephony service developed by the National Research Council of Canada. Supported by a number of companies in the US and Canada, MSAT hosts a number of services, including the broadcast of CDGPS signals...
- O3b
- Satellite phoneSatellite phoneA satellite telephone, satellite phone, or satphone is a type of mobile phone that connects to orbiting satellites instead of terrestrial cell sites...
- SkyWave Mobile CommunicationsSkyWave Mobile CommunicationsSkyWave Mobile Communications is a satellite telematics company that provides satellite transceivers, dual-mode satellite/GPRS terminals and satellite network services for global tracking, monitoring, and control of mobile and stationary assets...
- Solaris MobileSolaris MobileSolaris Mobile is a joint venture company between SES Astra and Eutelsat Communications to develop and commercialize the first geostationary satellite systems in Europe for broadcasting video, radio and data to in-vehicle receivers and to mobile devices, such as mobile phones, portable media...
- TerreStar NetworksTerreStar NetworksTerreStar Corporation , formerly Motient Corp. and American Mobile Satellite Corp. , was the controlling shareholder of TerreStar Networks Inc. and TerreStar Global Ltd., and a shareholder of SkyTerra Communications.TerreStar Networks was a Reston, Virginia-based company that operated integrated...
- XM Satellite RadioXM Satellite RadioXM Satellite Radio is one of two satellite radio services in the United States and Canada, operated by Sirius XM Radio. It provides pay-for-service radio, analogous to cable television. Its service includes 73 different music channels, 39 news, sports, talk and entertainment channels, 21 regional...