John,
I think you have the general idea about how GlobalStar will work, although you have gone somewhat beyond what I can verify as per rates and billing plans, none of which have been announced with any specificity.
I suggest you check out the GlobalStar, Loral, and Qualcomm web pages and the appropriate threads on SI where all of this has been discussed many times in far more depth than the brief synopsis I've attempted in my postings over the last few days.
(It could take a while. We're a talkative bunch!)
By the way, while I feel there is plenty of demand, I think one really big reason for GlobalStar's success will be their international partners, who are limited partners in the company. Stockholders like me own a relatively small percentage.
Loral currently owns almost half of GlobalStar, is managing the project, and is building the satellites through their SSL subsidiary. Qualcomm owns about 10%, is providing the basic CDMA technology, and is building the groundstations. The other partners (see below) are mostly big, international phone companies, and are responsible for all marketing within their own territories.
So unlike Iridium's local partners, GlobalStar's marketing partners are also investors, and therefore have a more serious financial self interest motivating them. They really want and need to see their satellite investment succeed.
And I have to believe companies of this calibre would not have made this investment without having done significant due diligence with far more information about the future of cellular technology and markets than I could ever hope to acquire.
Here is the list of partners currently shown on GlobalStar's web page.
globalstar.com
Airtouch, Alcatel, Alenia, Dacom, Daimler Benz Aerospace, Elsacom, France Telecom, Hyundai, and Vodafone. |
