France Telecom Mobile Satellite Communications (FTMSC) is expecting 5 percent revenue growth in 2005 and could see further increases in 2006 with the launch of Inmarsat’s BGAN (Broadband Global Area Network) services.

Inmarsat selected FTMSC as the primary system launch partner for the launch of BGAN. There are three areas the operator must focus on to be ready for the launch, Erik Ceuppens, CEO of FTMSC told Satellite News. For technical operations, FTMSC already has an Internet protocol (IP) connection between the Inmarsat earth station in Burum, Netherlands, and a test platform via a point-of-presence located and tested from Amsterdam to Aussaguel, France. FTMSC also is streamlining the interface between its billing and provisioning systems, as well as having sales and marketing teams involved, he said.

Inmsarsat and FTMSC hope that BGAN will prove compelling for small and medium enterprises, as well as corporations, looking for mobile voice and data communications. BGAN is slated to begin commercial operation with speeds of as much as 492 kilobits per second and eventual coverage of 85 percent of the world’s land mass. Initially, the service is being carried over a single satellite that was launched in March; a second satellite that will provide service to the Americas and Atlantic Ocean is scheduled for launch next month.

“The first challenge for us is to have a successful BGAN service launch,” Ceuppens said. “We will do everything we can to be on the market with a high-quality BGAN service with the right portfolio of value-added services.”

Pricing

FTMSC already offers Regional BGAN services, a service Inmarsat launched in 2002. FTMSC already has unveiled a series of promotional packages for the regional service intended to appeal to different user segments. “I think we very much appreciate the fact that Inmarsat has been quick to adapt a new market proposal in response to other mobile data services on the market,” Ceuppens said. “In our mind, the most interesting one is the middle range package with a month’s use of 200 megabits per second. We expect this package to develop quickly in our market. For other packages, they are more high level and need much higher investment from the users, and we want to develop them within our existing customer segments and niches.”

The BGAN services, in combination with a link up with Thuraya, will help FTMSC meet its goal of offering the largest portfolio of mobile satellite solutions on the market, Ceuppens said. “The way we see the market developing is we try too really focus the company on the growth areas in the mobile satellite industry,” he said. “These we believe are the same that we see in the terrestrial mobile business. On the one hand, you have mobility and on the other hand you have broadband. We are in an excellent position in the land mobile market, having a leadership position on the handheld services with Thuraya and Iridium.”

FTMSC also has introduced new pricing packages for its Thuraya offerings, Ceuppens said. “Thuraya has introduced flat fee packages, as it is important for some market segments to have stability of telecoms costs when moving into broadband solutions,” he said. “In terms of IP pricing, I think they have seen the importance of having IP costs at a reasonable level. I think those two elements, fixed-fee pricing and lower IP charges are two important marketing innovations for the industry and the future for the growth of mobile services.”

–Mark Holmes

(Annie Hurley, for FTMSC, e-mail, ahurley@i-et-e.fr)