Singapore based Addvalue Technologies and Inmarsat will now jointly offer the world's first commercial on-demand communications service using satellites in the low erarth orbit. The service is specifically designed to address certain elements of the rapidly expanding Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellite market. The service, termed Inter-Satellite Data Relay Service ("IDRS"), will enhance and improve the operational efficiency of LEO satellite operations globally. The Inmarsat and Addvalue IDRS service agreement is a follow-through of the signed Memorandum of Understanding announced by Addvalue on 2 February 2017.
Up until the introduction of IDRS, communications with LEO satellites has only been available when the satellite is within line-of-sight of an earth station. This limited connectivity is available to a rigid time schedule based on the particular LEO satellite's orbit and the geographic location of the earth station. With IDRS LEO satellite operators will be able to have on-demand 24/7, near real-time two-way IP-based communications links to all of their satellites. IDRS will allow LEO constellation operators to rapidly respond to customer requirements and to operational anomalies in their fleet. It will be based on Addvalue's space-tested IDRS terminal and Inmarsat's established Geosynchronous Earth Orbit ("GEO") I-4 satellite-based Broadband Global Area Network (BGAN) network. Addvalue expects that the service will have a significant impact on the operational efficiency and profitability of LEO satellite constellations.
This Master Service Agreement will make IDRS available to carefully targeted commercial LEO customers globally. Addvalue and Inmarsat will work together to take the IDRS service to market, with Addvalue providing the IDRS flight hardware to be carried on board the LEO satellites and serving as the distributor of IDRS airtime to LEO satellite operators.
