French defence and aerospace group Thales said on Tuesday it had finalised a contract worth 2.2 billion dollars to supply 81 telecommunications satellites to US firm Iridium Communication.

The first satellite will be launched in early 2015, under the contract worth the equivalent of 1.6 billion euros.

Subsidiary Thales Alenia Space will sub-contract out in North America about 40 percent of the work involved, a statement said.

Ericsson Provides New Switching Technology for Iridium Satellite Network
McLean VA (SPX) Oct 27 - Iridium Communications has contracted with Ericsson Federal Inc. (EFI) to implement a new Ericsson Mobile Softswitch Solution (MSS) to provide Iridium's next-generation switching technology, including custom design, development, integration and maintenance for the Iridium satellite communications system. Iridium has transitioned all commercial traffic to the new Ericsson MSS switching technology. The next-generation Ericsson MSS platform will support both current and future satellite communications services as well as increase the capacity of the existing Iridium network. This enhanced technology will provide a major upgrade in the current infrastructure, which will allow Iridium's present system to meet growing customer demand. It will also contribute to a smooth transition into Iridium NEXT, the company's next-generation satellite constellation. "Iridium's investment in the new switching system is the next step in modernizing our current network," said Jayesh Patel, vice president of network engineering and planning, Iridium. "Upgrading to the Ericsson switch improves the capacity and flexibility of our already robust, redundant system." "In the long term, the new switch lays the framework for the upgraded functionality and capacity of Iridium NEXT," said John Roddy, executive vice president of ground operations and product development, Iridium. "Our partnership with Ericsson is instrumental as we continue to move forward toward Iridium NEXT, positioning Iridium to meet the growing demands for added capacity and services in a cost-effective manner and with enhanced reliability." "Ericsson MSS offerings are designed to power the next generation all-IP converged networks that will support all types of traffic and emerging services," said Doug Smith, president and CEO, Ericsson Federal. "By providing the lowest power consumption on the market along with the smallest footprint, Ericsson MSS will deliver Iridium a low-cost and environmentally-friendly operation to power today's and tomorrow's networks. This relationship demonstrates Iridium's commitment to investing in the development of its next-generation satellite constellation."