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Technology Stocks : Loral Space & Communications -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Valueman who wrote (6089)	5/9/1999 11:16:00 AM
From: Rocket Scientist	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 10852

<Didn't they mention a $100 million/quarter burn rate for Loral, not G, on this latest CC?> I definitely had the impression they were talking about Loral, not G, and I was surprised by the number because if I read the 3Q and 4Q98 statements correctly, Loral was cash postivie during 4Q98 to the tune of 200M$. In any case, it's clear that a substantial amount of the "burn rate" is for discretionary spending (e.g. LS20.20), capital expenditures at SS/L, etc

To: Valueman who wrote (6089)	5/9/1999 1:58:00 PM
From: djane	Respond to of 10852

Astrolink Construction Under Way From the May 10, 1999 issue of Wireless Week By Caron Carlson WASHINGTON--The race to deliver Internet access from space began in earnest last week when Lockheed Martin inaugurated its Astrolink LLC satellite venture with $900 million in equity from three founding partners. Promising to offer the first global bandwidth-on-demand data service, Lockheed Martin Global Telecommunications Group, Telespazio of Italy and TRW Inc. said they will begin deploying satellites in 2002 and deliver service in 2003. Construction has already begun on satellite components. Lockheed, which is investing $400 million in cash, will supply the spacecraft, provide systems integration and conduct the launches, holding a 46 percent interest in the venture. Telespazio will build ground systems and manage the network, investing $250 million in cash. TRW, which also will invest $250 million, will build the communications payloads for the satellites. Astrolink's complete financial requirement is $3.6 billion, 40 percent of which will be equity and the remainder debt, said President and CEO Celso Azevedo. "This is a very solid position compared to other satellite ventures in this stage of development." He added that he will seek additional equity investors and issue an initial public offering before commercial rollout in 2003. Teledesic Corp.--the "Internet-in-the-sky" venture backed by Motorola Inc., Craig McCaw and Bill Gates--claims it will be "the world's first global broadband network" with "fiber-like" delays, meaning it will have less than the half-second lag associated with geostationary satellite transmissions. While it will employ the same frequency band--the "Ku-Band"--as Astrolink, Teledesic plans a constellation of 288 satellites in low-Earth orbit. "We're unfazed by this [Astrolink] announcement," said Teledesic spokesman Roger Nyhus. "We believe the future of broadband satellite communications is in the hands of LEOs." From Astrolink's perspective, GEOs present several strategic advantages. First, they incorporate an older and better-tested technology. Second, deployed much higher in space, fewer GEOs are needed to cover the globe, and fewer satellites means lower launch risks. With one satellite, Astrolink will serve Europe and North and South America, and with three more, it will cover the Earth. As many as nine satellites will eventually be in operation. "The beauty of a geostationary satellite network is global coverage with four satellites," Azevedo said. "LEOs just cannot do that." The Astrolink partners also distanced their venture from the nascent commercial satellite telephone industry, which is experiencing a difficult birth with the launch of Iridium LLC late last year. Having fallen far short of revenue and subscriber projections, Iridium caused concerns in the financial community about capital requirements and market demand. With geostationary satellites, Astrolink will deploy service gradually, establishing a revenue stream in Europe and North and South American before going global. Its founders also emphasized that they will capitalize on the rapidly growing business demand for ubiquitous information, targeting large corporate customers first and the consumer market later. "The market for broadband services is nothing short of sizzling," said John Sponyoe, CEO of Lockheed Martin Global Telecommunications. \| Home Page \| Site Map \| Search Archive \| PowerSearch \| \| International \| Wireless Web Sites \| Hot Stories \| Please send comments and suggestions on this Web site to jcollins@chilton.net Wireless Week, 600 S. Cherry St., #400, Denver, CO 80246 Voice: 303-393-7449, Fax: 303-399-2034 Published by Cahners Business Information © Copyright 1999. All rights reserved.