Satellite System Providers Unveil Advanced Products

Satellite system providers Hughes Network Systems and Iridium Satellite introduced new products Tuesday as they moved to take advantage of developments in satellite services.

Hughes introduced its DW7740 satellite router, which features two VoIP ports and two broadband LAN ports. The router, targeted at adoption by the firm's international service providers, will be particularly cost-effective in rural and e-governance applications, Hughes said.

"It operates with all DW systems and supports simultaneous voice and high-speed data applications from an integrated and cost-effective platform, making it ideal in rural and remote settings," said Pradman Kaul, chairman and CEO of Hughes, in a statement.

Iridium unveiled a new data transceiver that it believes will be integrated into products in markets ranging from supply chain logistics and homeland security to trucking and automotive.

The device, the 9601 Short-Burst Data Transceiver, optimizes two-way data links using the Iridium global SBD service.Iridium also said it currently has 142,000 voice and data subscribers. The firm said it has begun an engineering study as the next step toward developing its next-generation constellation.

Satellite companies' business jumped in the wake of Hurricanes Karina and Rita. Iridium said its subscriber base increased more than 500 percent in the affected areas.