Eagle Broadband Unveils Unique New Product Line Based On Low-Earth-Orbit, Satellite Communications
Eagle Broadband Inc., a leading supplier of broadband
products, services and content, announced today that the company’s new
proprietary product line based on low-Earth-orbit satellite
communications has successfully completed required field testing,
passed its initial production design review and is now ready for
release to production.
This unique wireless communications system incorporates voice,
fax, Internet and text Web-based e-mail and offers, for the first
time, true “total” global communications coverage for large numbers of
users from non-line-of-sight environments. The system will be marketed
under the name Orb’Phone “Exchange” for both aeronautical applications
and land-based operations. The “total” global communications coverage
of the Orb’Phone “Exchange” is possible because the system uses the
Iridium Satellite LLC voice and data network — a constellation of 66
operational low-Earth-orbit satellites deployed on six polar planes.
Commercial aviation benefits include a passenger’s ability to place
air-to-ground telephone calls and receive ground-to-air telephone
calls from virtually anywhere in the world, including over the oceans
and the poles.
“This new communications capability has the potential to change
communications habits for travelers worldwide,” said Dr. H. Dean
Cubley, Eagle Broadband’s chairman of the board and CEO.
“Traditionally, low-Earth-orbit satellite communications systems have
only been accessible from “line-of-sight” exterior locations to
individuals with specialized satellite telephones. The key to our
patent-pending technology is the combination of large numbers of
users, using simplified handsets, engaging in simultaneous
multi-functional communications from non-line-of-sight locations. That
combination has never existed before.”
The Orb’Phone “Exchange” is of particular interest to the
commercial and military aviation industry since it provides true
“all-passenger,” gate-to-gate communications capabilities from inside
aircraft, without the possibility of interference to aviation
navigation equipment — a problem believed to be inherent in typical
ground-based, cellular-type equipment.
The military also has a special interest in the capabilities of
the Orb’Phone “Exchange” because it can produce the equivalent of a
domestic communications environment in non-line-of-sight situations in
any remotely deployed communications center — anywhere in the world.
More importantly, it can be deployed within minutes of arrival without
exposing military communications personnel to the external local
conditions and in a totally secure mode. The U.S. military is already
a major user of Iridium capacity and the Orb’Phone “Exchange” could
provide much more effective and widespread usage.
The Orb’Phone “Exchange” is the combined effort of Eagle Broadband
and Belgium-based Euro-GSM, Ltd. Eagle Broadband will maintain the
intellectual property and manufacturing rights, while Euro-GSM, Ltd.
will have exclusive non-U.S. marketing rights based on a minimum
volume of annual sales. Euro-GSM, Ltd. has extensive experience in
marketing communications products worldwide both to the commercial
aviation industry as well as to the military. The company is currently
marketing the Orb’Phone “Exchange” worldwide as well as a related
two-channel product under the Orb’Phone brand. Within the U.S., the
Orb’Phone “Exchange” is being marketed by a U.S.-based marketing
organization that includes both Eagle Broadband and Euro-GSM, Ltd.
Additional details regarding the Orb’Phone family of products will be
provided in subsequent press releases.
About Eagle Broadband
Eagle Broadband Inc. and its subsidiaries are leading suppliers of
broadband products, services and content. Eagle also has extensive
“last mile” cable and fiber installation capabilities and provides
complete IT business integration and enterprise management solutions
to Fortune 1000 companies. As the leading provider of
Fiber-to-the-Home (FTTH), Eagle provides residential communities with
Bundled Digital Services (BDS(SM)) packages that include cable-style
television over fiber, local and long-distance telephone service,
high-speed broadband Internet connectivity and security monitoring
services. The company also markets structured wiring, home automation
products, home theater entertainment centers, communication systems
and security systems to homebuilders nationwide as well as to its
contracted BDS communities. The company is headquartered in League
City, Texas, south of Houston, near the NASA Johnson Space Center.
Further news updates on Eagle Broadband, its products and services are
available at www.eaglebroadband.com, www.broadbandmagic.com,
www.atlanticpacific.com, www.etoolz.com and www.ucgi.com.
Forward-looking statements in this release regarding Eagle
Broadband Inc. and its subsidiaries are made pursuant to the “safe
harbor” provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of
1995. Investors are cautioned that such forward-looking statements
involve risks and uncertainties, including, without limitation,
continued acceptance of the company’s products, increased levels of
competition, new products and technological changes, the company’s
dependence upon third-party suppliers, intellectual property rights,
and other risks detailed from time to time in the company’s periodic
reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
