To: Howard t Anderson who wrote (9531 ) 1/14/2000 3:58:00 PM From: brian h Read Replies (2) | Respond to of 29987
Howard, You are welcome. There is more from the report. Welcome on board. Either you are in or not. ---------------- SERVICE LAUNCH ACTIVITIES Globalstar's strategy has been to use its experienced telecommunications service provider partners to provide a marketing organization with depth and expertise in each local market that the system serves. They have begun intensive marketing campaigns and are adopting multifaceted, locally oriented strategies to serve their markets. A number of Globalstar service providers recently agreed in principle to make advance purchases of approximately 50 million minutes of Globalstar airtime. We expect these purchases to result in $19 million of revenues in 2000, after giving effect to a 25% promotional discount. A recent understanding among all the principal Globalstar service providers should result in a uniform retail pricing structure for Globalstar service throughout most of the world. Although service providers will retain flexibility to meet local conditions, domestic Globalstar calls will on average cost between $1.00 and $1.50 per minute. The total cost of most international calls, including third party costs of connection through the public network, will generally cost between $1.50 and $2.99 per minute, depending upon distance and local competitive factors. Globalstar spent approximately $12 million on brand-building advertising in 1999 and plans to spend an additional $55 million in 2000, of which $20 million will come from service providers as contributions to a cooperative advertising program. In each local market they serve, the service providers have created partnerships with local cellular carriers to support the terrestrial cellular capabilities of our multimode phones and established distribution networks appropriate to the markets in question. As a result, Globalstar's original consortium of 12 leading international telecommunications service providers and manufacturers has grown into an international marketing organization with marketing channels in 125 countries and agreements with more than 220 local service providers. This means that responsibility for selling Globalstar service in nearly every one of its markets will rest with distributors with extensive experience with the relevant local market conditions and regulatory environments. Globalstar's service providers will also be in a position to market Globalstar service to their current customer base of more than 100 million cellular subscribers alongside their existing products and services. Globalstar's service providers intend to adapt their marketing efforts to the needs, characteristics and opportunities within each of the markets in which they operate. In some cases, this will mean making phones available through the same sales channels used to market cellular service to consumers. In other cases, they will use industry-specific sales channels to address high-demand market segments. Globalstar service providers have identified a number of key segments of the addressable marketplace characterized by early expressions of interest in obtaining the service and by the potential for heavy usage of satellite airtime estimated to range between several hundred and 1,000 minutes per phone per month. These include: Government. Because of its security, clarity, reliability and ubiquity, Globalstar service meets the needs of military, law enforcement and emergency response users, such as fire and ambulance services. During Globalstar's user trials, one of its service providers responded to a request from the Italian government to supply phones to support their peacekeeping units in Kosovo. Globalstar service providers have also provided phones for use in Venezuela to support disaster recovery operations in the aftermath of its recent flood and in France, when high winds toppled cellular towers. Maritime. Globalstar service is or will be available in the coastal and inland waterways where most maritime traffic is focused, as well as over many trans-oceanic routes, such as the North Atlantic. Globalstar maritime phones, which will be available in commercial quantities in the second quarter of 2000, will offer a compact, cost-effective, high-quality alternative to existing maritime satellite services. Commercial freight and fishing vessels and private boats will be important markets for Globalstar. Cruise lines will be of particular interest, because of the potential for high-volume usage of multiple on-board phones by passengers who need to address business or family needs. Transportation. Truck drivers have a continuous need to contact dispatchers and destinations, and need to react to changing business demands and weather conditions. In the developing world, neither cellular service nor pay phones are available for vast portions of frequently traveled routes. Even in the United States, only 50% of the land mass is covered by cellular service. Business travelers in such areas have similar requirements, which our service providers hope to address quickly by equipping rental cars and corporate fleets. Natural Resources. We believe that there is substantial unmet demand for telecommunications services to support the field operations of the forestry, mining, oil and gas and other natural resource industries. Most of these operations take place in remote locations where a large, permanent telecommunications infrastructure is uneconomic. Outdoor Enthusiasts. Our service providers hope to make Globalstar phones part of the basic equipment of wilderness guides and outfitters, addressing the growing market for adventure and eco-tourism, as well as the hunting, fishing and mountaineering markets. Agribusiness. Large plantations, ranches and other agricultural businesses in countries like Australia, Brazil and Argentina typically lie beyond the range of current or planned cellular service, and should find Globalstar service valuable to coordinate their operations. Utilities. Utility companies worldwide need to maintain right-of-way across long distances in territories that are often vast and remote. Globalstar phones will enable them to monitor and deploy their resources more efficiently. Globalstar's service providers have an existing customer base of more than 100 million cellular customers from which they intend to identify for direct marketing efforts those who work in, or frequently travel to, or through, areas without cellular service. -------------- Brian H.