Iridium Communications Inc. (Nasdaq: IRDM) today reported financial results for the second quarter of 2021 and updated its full-year 2021 outlook. Net income was US$ 3.8 million, or $0.03 per diluted share, for the second quarter of 2021, as compared to net loss of $12.4 million, or $0.09 per diluted share, for the second quarter of 2020.

Satellite Markets and Research Editor-in-Chief Virgil Labrador spoke with  Guido Neumann, Chief Development Officer and President EMEA of AXESS Networks who gave a brief history of his company and the current trends and opportunities in the teleport business.

In an election taking place over the final week of June, the membership of SSPI-WISE (SSPI Women in Space Engagement) has appointed fourteen women to officer positions, including:

Intelsat announced today that Gogo Commercial Aviation, a business it acquired in December 2020, is dropping the Gogo name and is now called Intelsat.

With its acquisition of Gogo’s Commercial Aviation division, Intelsat became the world’s leading provider of inflight broadband connectivity to the commercial aviation industry. The vertical integration is uniquely positioning Intelsat to deliver a reliable, high-performance inflight entertainment and connectivity (IFEC) experience for commercial airlines and their passengers.

Seraphim Capital has recently invested £2 million into two UK companies – Isotropic Systems and Commodities AI (“ChAI”). Both of these new investments will form part of the portfolio of 19 companies that are due to be acquired by Seraphim Space Investment Trust PLC – the world’s first listed fund focused on the space sector - which is expected to complete its IPO on Friday, July 9.

WORK Microwave, a leading European manufacturer of advanced satellite communications equipment, today announced that it has signed a new multimillion-dollar agreement with Eutelsat, one of the world's leading satellite operators with a powerful fleet of satellites serving users across Europe, Africa, Asia, and the Americas. Eutelsat is using WORK Microwave's Ka- and Q-/V-band converters on its ground segment equipment during the next phase of its connectivity strategy, offering ultra-high data throughput via its KONNECT VHTS satellite.

Satellogic, a provider of high-resolution satellite data collection, and CF Acquisition Corp. V (Nasdaq: CFV) (“CFAC V”), a special purpose acquisition company sponsored by Cantor Fitzgerald, announced today that they have entered into a definitive merger agreement that will result in Satellogic becoming a publicly traded company.

The transaction is expected to be completed early in the fourth quarter of 2021, subject to regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions. After closing, Satellogic will trade on the Nasdaq under ticker symbol SATL.

Satellite communication will play a significant role in 5G and beyond as a complementary solution for ubiquitous coverage, broadcast/multicast provision, aeronautical & maritime communications, emergency/disaster recovery, and remote rural area coverage.  

The latest webinar in the GVF-SEG series posed a very important question – Antenna Innovations: Keeping Up with the Rest of the Industry?  It is based on a very important premise – that the transformation of the commercial exploitation of space and rapid progression from “Space 2.0” to “Space 3.0” (exemplified in such innovations as re-usable and 3-D printed launchers, assembly line satellite manufacturing, terabit-per-second satellite networks) can only be fully realized if comparable innovations occur with antennas.

In the recent years, the Asia-Pacific region has become a bright spot for connectivity solutions. One of the reasons is its huge population, which represents approximately 60% of the humanity (4.6 billion people as of 2020). 

India is one of the biggest consumers of satellite content and has made significant progress in the past few years to unlock its full potential of the video market. Though DTH is very popular in India, companies like Reliance JIO are now becoming the competitor in the broadcasting segment due to their low-cost services.