The race to provide
the world's first
global hand-held
mobile phone service has been won by
TRW. The US
Patent and Trademarks
Office has issued two patents
related to the
mediam earth orbit
(MEO) Odyssey
system that TRW is
expected to
launch. Satellites in
the MEO would
be located at an
altitude of 10,000-
18,000 km from the
earth (Middle
East Communications,
Vol 10, No 8).
TRW claims that the
patents are broad enough to "pose
a major concern for aspiring
imitators", which
could be inferred as
an oblique reference to the
London-based
Inmarsat-P
(Inter-Mobile Satellite
Organisation), the
only other MEO
project in the
pipeline.
We are a voice to you; you have been a support to us. Together we build journalism that is independent, credible and fearless. You can further help us by making a donation. This will mean a lot for our ability to bring you news, perspectives and analysis from the ground so that we can make change together.
.png)
Comments are moderated and will be published only after the site moderator’s approval. Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name. Selected comments may also be used in the ‘Letters’ section of the Down To Earth print edition.