Hi T(Imbecilic)Mann--just thought I'd add that you can color me nutty as well. From my (dim bulbed) perspective, the next frontier for G* is the CUSTOMER, plain and simple. Now that all the superbly talented engineering folks have done their thing (and of course if they hadn't, we wouldn't be having this discussion), we're down to tiny little details like quality and reliabity of service, value received, pricing, handset availability, account administration, coordination among thirty trillion service providers to insure that the customer is presented with a seamless experience, and a few bazillion other insignificant items.
This has been my major area of 'concern' (as in, remains to be seen). Loral does not have a consumer marketing background; I presume that the primary customer contact efforts will remain with the carriers on the front line with LOR/G* 'hiding' in the rear as
wholesaler--that does NOT mean that they can sit back and leave the driving to others however.
This is where the rubber hits the road--again AFTER little details like constellation architecture, adoption of CDMA as air interface modality, a few successful launches, and installation of ground stations were taken care of. The effort, brains, and capital have now got us knocking on the door--will the customer answer and respond by writing a check? I fail to see how anything could be more significant. Call me zany.
Mike Doyle |
