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| Sunday, 26 May 2002 |
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| News Business Features Editorial
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100%
contactability across the country
MTN Networks, the mobile telecommunication service, has announced the launch of satellite mobile telephony services. The company will market the Thuraya satellite mobile telephony service, available for the first time in Sri Lanka and the region under the brand name Dialog SAT. Mobile Telephony Services would now be available throughout Sri Lanka and its territorial waters in addition to all areas covered by Thuraya which comprises 99 countries across three continents. CEO of MTN Networks Dr. Hans Wijayasuriya said: "We have succeeded in adding the affordability dimension to this critical telecommunications technology and have made it readily accessible to our Sri Lankan consumers." Pradeep De Almeida, Manager Network Operations and Lead Project Manager for the introduction of Thuraya services in Sri Lanka said: "Our handset can operate in both SAT and GSM modes - this means that when outside GSM coverage, whether it be in a remote part of Sri Lanka, or on the high seas, or in any other country within the Thuraya footprint, subscribers would have access to seamless telecommunications facilities. Calls made while in SAT mode will be more expensive than standard GSM calls. However, when within GSM coverage, the phone would switch to GSM mode and the subscriber would enjoy normal Dialog GSM call rates." "The system also provides SMS in SAT as well as GSM mode and Data and Fax transmission capability," Almeida added. The service will provide an umbrella of telecommunications coverage across Sri Lanka, enabling 100 per cent contactability across the country for the first time. Anoja Obeyesekera, General Manager of International Business at MTN said the satellite telephony service does not require the establishment of terrestrial infrastructure and could be a rapid solution to bridging the digital divide. A subscriber will be able to determine as well as transmit his/her location to a high degree of accuracy using the standard GPS (Global Positioning System) feature. This will be of importance for navigation as well as disaster recovery applications. The Thuraya mobile satellite system is a one billion dollar project built by Boeing Satellite Systems, formerly Hughes Space and Communications International Inc. It was launched in October 2000 and is the heaviest commercial payload and the first commercial satellite to employ digital beam forming. |
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