INMARSAT PASSES KEY MILESTONE FOR BGAN

10,000th activation of mobile broadband service

6th June 2007 – Inmarsat  (LSE:ISAT), the world’s leading provider of global mobile satellite communications, today announced that its Broadband Global Area Network (BGAN) service has more than 10,000 subscribers.  Passing the milestone means that BGAN is Inmarsat’s fastest growing service over its first year of introduction.

The service, which has been deployed in more than 175 countries to date, is used by international broadcasters, aid agencies, the world’s leading oil and gas companies, government agencies, and by users who need reliable voice and data connectivity beyond the reach of terrestrial networks.

Users of BGAN include:
• Télécoms Sans Frontières – The UN-appointed specialist in emergency telecoms has deployed BGAN to support crisis communications in Indonesia, Democratic Republic of Congo, Lebanon, Mozambique and Uruguay;
• The BBC – The broadcaster has used BGAN to send live and recorded ‘videophone’ reports from the world’s hotspots, including Afghanistan, Darfur and Ethiopia;
• Petro-Canada – The Canadian oil and gas company has equipped its engineers and small teams working in the field with BGAN, for communication with headquarters;
• The Climate Change College – An environmental monitoring expedition to Greenland used BGAN to send scientific data and research to analysts and the world’s media;
• The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) – The U.S. first responder agency has procured over 500 BGAN terminals for its ‘first-in’ disaster response preparation.  The service was also used recently in a city-wide casualty exercise in Tampa, Florida, U.S., organised by the State fire-rescue services.

A BGAN terminal will accompany Ewan McGregor on his epic motorbike journey from London to Cape town, during which he will use the service to send video, pictures and post blogs for the accompanying Long Way Down TV series.

“BGAN has shown that it can take Inmarsat deeper into its core markets, but also penetrate new markets and attract users that would not previously have considered satellite communications,” said Drew Brandy, Head of Land Mobile Services for Inmarsat.  “BGAN is easy to carry and quick to deploy, and it continues to prove itself by delivering broadband communications where terrestrial networks simply cannot reach.

“For this reason, it is providing services for users as diverse as broadcasters and energy companies to pig farms and confectionary manufacturers,” said Drew.

BGAN offers simultaneous voice and broadband data communications, at speeds of up to 492kbps, for secure access to telephony and virtual private networks, the Internet and email.   Whenever the local telecoms infrastructure is either unreliable or non-existent, the mobile broadband communications service can be quickly deployed to establish essential communications.

“We are working with our partners to maintain the high levels of service, support and innovation that our end users expect, ensuring that BGAN continues to bring connectivity wherever it is most needed,” concluded Drew.