UDATED: Iridium looks to poach Globalstar customers

Iridium Satellite L.L.C. is relaunching a program in an effort to score customers from struggling rival Globalstar.
The company has announced it will once again offer Trade-Up to Iridium because of the much-publicized degradation of Globalstar’s voice service. The program provides pricing incentives for customers trading up from Globalstar to Iridium handsets and service.
“Iridium’s goal is to ensure that satellite phone users have access to consistently reliable global satellite communications services,” Don Thoma, EVP marketing for Iridium, said in a statement. “Our network is now recognized to be the only satellite communications service that dependably provides a critical communications lifeline everywhere.”
Earlier this month, Globalstar in a filing to the Securities and Exchange Commission indicated many of the company’s 40 satellites have degraded. The company said eight satellites launched in 2007 will continue to provide voice and data services to customers. However, the company said it could take customers longer to establish calls and the duration of calls could be limited. The company is allowing customers to track satellites on its Web site to determine coverage.
A Globalstar spokesperson said the company is working on upgrading its network with satellite launches set for later this year. The new network is expected to provide reliable coverage beyond 2025.
“This is a promotion that was launched more than a year ago and received little significant traction, therefore we would not expect anything different this time around,” the spokesperson said. “Since we are just about to launch our new satellites, there seems little incentive for anyone to trade our phone for an Iridium phone, considering it is far more expensive to buy and to use than ours.”
Starting today, any Globalstar satellite phone user is eligible to trade in a handset for an Iridium satellite phone. The program is available to any end user from any market until Sept. 30. The original program, which was offered last year, was available to government users, first responders, educational institutions and relief organizations. The program has been expanded due to wide interest from non-public-sector customers.
Participating Iridium service providers will offer a credit of up to $400 on a new Iridium 9505A satellite phone to customers turning in an existing Globalstar handset. Customers who sign up for a qualified Iridium calling plan could also receive up to $300 in airtime credits.
“This is an excellent opportunity to trade-up to Iridium if your satellite phone must serve as a reliable, critical lifeline,” Thoma said.
The Bethesda, Md., company offers satellite coverage across the globe. The company serves the Department of Defense and other U.S. and international government agencies.
Article updated Feb. 27 to include additional information on Globalstar.