Iridium Extreme PTT. Photo: Iridium

[Via Satellite 06-29-2015] Iridium Communications has revealed its initial service providers for the Iridium Push-to-Talk (PTT) solution, a global, satellite-based push-to-talk service. The six partners are Beam Communications, Gardline Communications (G COMM), Gilat Satcom, AST Group (AST), Network Innovations, Roadpost and Spacenet Communication Services de Mexico.

Iridium PTT is comprised of three components: the PTT service, delivered through the Iridium Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellite constellation; the Iridium command center, the cloud-based management system where all radios and talkgroups are managed; and the Iridium PTT radios. The service uses half-duplex communication, like a walkie-talkie, where one party talks to other participants in a group who serve as listeners. Iridium PTT works with Iridium’s existing constellation and is compatible with Iridium NEXT, the company’s next-generation satellite constellation.

The command center gives organizations the ability to easily manage and define the geographic coverage for each needed talkgroup. The coverage areas are created using a graphical map interface fueled by Google Maps. Through the command center, administrators can quickly define which devices/users are members of specific talkgroups and how many talkgroups are needed.