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78Maritime Reporter & Engineering News for innovative communications solutions. Theres also a deep-rooted desire for service providers who intimately understand this sectors unique customer needs. While others may view this set of customers as demanding, Iridiums partner ecosystem under- stands them well. Because of this, our maritimebusiness makes up a large portion of our thriving commercial business. Our commercial service rev- enue during the fourth quarter of 2011 was $50.6 million, a 14 percent increase from last year's com-parable period, which was primarily supported by gains in M2M data, handheld voice and Iridium OpenPort high-speed maritime customers. All three service offerings serve maritime market needs well. Put in perspective the importance of Iridium Pilot, both in terms of its importance to your maritime cus- tomers, and to the company overall. DeschDue to the vital communications serviceIridium provides mariners, we are committed to de- livering the best communications solutions at the best value. Iridium Pilot is small and durable, and has enhanced capabilities to optimize telecommuni-cations across fleets. It provides fully global voice and broadband data connectivity to our maritime customers at an affordable cost. Its also fully com- patible with VSAT technologies to even further in- crease the value of this broadband tool for our maritime customers. As far as importance to the company, were committed to the broadband mar- ket as one of the key growth areas for the company going forward, complementing handheld service, M2M applications, and services to militaries andemergency workers. Iridium Pilot is the third of many products the company plans to power by? the Iridium OpenPort service. This strategy provides a growth path for Iridium to expand into new markets, and it under- scores our dedication to uncovering new and better ways to help people communicate anywhere at any time. Most importantly, Iridium Pilot is designed to be compatible with Iridium NEXT, our next-gener- ation satellite constellation.What trends do you see among your maritime users that are helping to shape Iridiums product and serv- ice offering of tomorrow? DeschOne trend were seeing is the increasing de- mand among ship owners for VSAT services due to their always-on, very high speed data connections and fixed monthly prices. We are working closely with major VSAT service providers to bundle Irid- ium Pilot with their solutions to offer low-cost broadband service plans, with global coverage, to their customers. This integrated package, for the first time ever, provides a complete global communica- tions solution for this market, and is a great example of how a motivated partner channel magnifies our impact and reach.Iridium Pilot is optimized to seamlessly integrate with a vessels VSAT platform to overcome the cov- erage gaps, data-rate constraints and comparatively higher prices of other L-band mobile satellite serv-ice providers. Iridium offers VSAT companion packages with partners KVH Industries Inc. andVizada, and we expect to add additional distribution partners into this fold. What do you consider to be the top three challenges to running a profitable, effective satellite communi- cations company today?DeschFirst, in this trying global economy, your service has to remain vital. Business plans can get stale very quickly, as evidenced by the original Irid- ium. The original managers didnt continually chal- lenge their assumptions along the way as the system was being built ? but their competition had radically improved and changed along the way. I want to make sure that we dont miss anything this time around, and that we are constantly looking for new ways to get stronger, to be more successful, and to grow faster. While paranoia? might be considered a negative for individual health, I believe a little of it actually pays off in business. So, second, that leads to our need at Iridium to beobsessive innovators. Were not just about satellite phones or data modems. Were not just about lead- ing a single product category or legacy market, or about adjusting pricing on the same product whennothing else has changed. What challenges us is how to always remain a catalyst for technology in- novation. What inspires us, along with our partners, is making sure we are constantly innovating to meet the critical communications needs of our customers.Finally, its important for me to reinforce how crit- ical our diverse and economically incentivized part- ner channel is to our success. Theyre more energized than ever to grow their business with us. We have more than 275 partner companies in our ecosystem today. We appreciate their independence, as it drives creativity and innovation on a scale we couldnt do alone. The maritime industry is generally thought to beconservative. As satellite communications, in relative terms, is still in its infancy, what do you count as the best arguments in favor of the medium in breaking down traditional barriers? DeschTodays crews are of a generation that ex- pects ubiquitous connectivity wherever they are, so the restrictive, expensive, pay-by-the-minute com- munications models that used to work in the past INTERVIEWFIVE MINUTES WITH MATT DESCH, CEO, IRIDIUM (Five Minutes with Matt Desch, CEO Iridium ? Continued from page 8 )In the long history of humankind (and animal-kind fovise most effectively have prevailed.? That Matt Desch, CEO, Iridium
