We will consider the two global services, which provide a person an interruptible source of communication, even if he is in the Ands or in the midst of the ocean. These providers are Iridium and Global Star corporations. The Iridium and Global Star suggest freedom to their consumers. This freedom costs a person from three to five times more than a usual mobile talk, but when the means are justified you will pay as much as needed, won't you?

Iridium is the biggest satellite provider of wireless communication now. It launched commercial global satellite communications services on March 28, 2001. The service, provided by the company, includes a better connection and, concerning phones, sounds' mutual penetration. Iridium has 66 satellites, which orbit the poles. The satellites travel from the pole to pole and give coverage everywhere on the planet. It is really impressive to realize that sitting on the Arctic pole, for instance, you can write e-mails to your business partners or read the Internet news, while boating and fishing in the breaks between the fish pecks. If you work, live or travel in areas with an inadequate landline service or if there are always problems with the connection, Iridium provides an immediate solution. The connection you get with the Iridium is a satellite-based, wireless communications network, aimed to reach destinations anywhere on earth, at any time.

Freedom suggested by Globalstar is not so absolute, but if your plans are to cover no more than 120 countries, it provides it. The company uses 48 satellites floating over the central hemisphere of the Earth. Globalstar and Iridium both have LEO Low Earth Orbiting satellites. Globalstar operates "bent pipe" technology with path diversity. Path diversity allows a Globalstar phone to be linked to four satellites at one time- the quality of the connection depends on whether the satellite is in your region at the moment you need it or not.

Applications for both systems vary widely. They include the equipment for personal, mobile, or fixed location usage. With most satellite communication devices, one also needs GPS devices, satellite TV, satellite Internet, satellite modems, handheld satellite phones and fixed site satellite phones. To receive good service, using a hand held satellite phone, you only need 80% view of the sky. Buildings, roofs of vehicles and trees can block the satellite signal from reaching the device. When the conditions of the sky access are observed, all hardware can be also used in the cabin of an aircraft, the wheelhouse of a ship or the frontlines of a military action.

The pitiful and the last information for the consumers of the satellite connection is that these services are most likely not to become cheaper in the near future. The matter is that the satellites' term of use is usually no more than seven years and you can only imagine how expensive it is to substitute them. The only hope is that inventors will find some cheaper and longer lasting devices, opening new possibilities and promising cheaper costs as a result. For the moment, this is the best-known way to allow you to take care of your business and leisure, no matter where you are. The one thing you may be sure is that, as the satellite technologies develop, we will have the possibilities we have never been offered before.