A satellite telephone or Satphone or satellite phone is a mobile phone that uses satellites to connect to other phones. The Satellite mobile phones used for voice and internet access, since the cost of launching and technology used in the satellite is expensive, cost of the satphone and billing high comparing to the regular mobile phones. The satellite phones are normally used in ships, inaccessible places, inhabited places.
Iridium is the largest Satellite network provider in the world, and it launched 66 satellites around the earth’s surface. Globalstar is the second largest provider by subscribers, it has 44 active satellites.
| Rank | Operator | Technology | Subscribers (in millions) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Iridium | Proprietary TDMA | 0.500 (September 2011) |
| 2 | Globalstar | Proprietary CDMA | 0.439 (January 2011) |
| 3 | Thuraya | Proprietary FDMA/GSM | 0.260 (December 2007) |
| 4 | Inmarsat | Proprietary GSM | 0.254 (September 2009) |
| 5 | ACeS | Dual-mode Satellite/GSM | 0.020 (December 2007) |
