Globalstar, SingTel to provide Southeast Asia land, sea communications

Globalstar, SingTel to provide Southeast Asia land, sea communications Hoping to expand into the Southeast Asia market, Milpitas, Calif.-based telecommunications provider Globalstar Inc. Tuesday announced a partnership with Singapore Telecommunications Ltd. to extend voice and data communications satellite coverage to land and maritime customers in Malaysia and much of the surrounding region.
   Under terms of the partnership, SingTel will build and operate a Globalstar gateway ground station at its Seletar satellite earth station in Singapore to provide satellite coverage throughout Malaysia and Singapore as well parts of Indonesia, Brunei and the surrounding Southeast Asian maritime shipping region. A key area covered by the new system is the Straits of Malacca, one of the world’s most important shipping lanes.
   Both parties have described the partnership as the “initial step” for Globalstar to offer services with SingTel via the Seletar earth station.
   Globalstar will provide the engineering and technical training support for SingTel to operate the station.
   In addition, the agreement paves the way for both companies to deliver track-and-trace services for the maritime and logistics industries, using the Globalstar Simplex data network.
   Tony Navarra, president of global operations for Globalstar said in a release: “Because of the heavy maritime traffic, the region is particularly suited to Globalstar’s ability to provide voice, data and asset tracking and monitoring services beyond the reach of traditional land-based wireless infrastructure.”
   Globalstar provides a range of services to maritime customers throughout much of the world, and plans to use Singapore and Malaysia to form a strong base to enter the Southeast Asian market.
   Globalstar and SingTel are also in discussions on building a second satellite gateway within the region.
   SingTel is already a strong presence in the region, with stakes in Advanced Info Services of Thailand, Globe Telecom of the Philippines and Telkomsel of Indonesia.