Inmarsat service provide voice, broadband data services simultaneously through portable device The problem is familiar to many users seeking a wireless connection while on the road: how to locate and pay for a Wi-Fi connection, or how wide is the 3G (third-generation) coverage and how high is the roaming fee. Inmarsat has launched a new satellite-based service that it claims will solve these issues.“We offer global coverage and attractive pricing, all of which offers a very competitive alternative to 3G roaming service,” Inmarsat spokesman John Warehand said Thursday.London-based Inmarsat is billing its Broadband Global Area Network (BGAN) service, which went live Wednesday, as the world’s first mobile communications service to provide both voice and broadband data services simultaneously through a portable device. “The service allows you, for instance, to stream data while making a phone call at the same time via a satellite connection,” Warehand said. “We believe this is a unique offering in the industry.”Calls can be made either over a circuit-switched connection with “broadcast” quality or over a packet-switched connection using VoIP (voice over Internet Protocol) technology, according to Warehand.The BGAN service will provide initial data speeds up to 492Kbps. Immarsat’s two satellites — one of which is already operating, the other completing testing — will deliver broadband coverage to 85 percent of the world’s landmass, accounting for 98 percent of its population.The service, which took six years and $1.5 billion to develop, is now available in Europe, Africa, the Middle East and Asia. Coverage will be extended to North and South America in the second quarter of 2006, when the second satellite comes online“The only landmass areas that will not be covered is the eastern half of Australia and New Zealand and a part of Alaska,” Warehand said. While service will be available over the Atlantic, the Pacific remains a hole that Inmarsat may fill at a later time, according Warehand. Numerous airplanes are already equipped with Inmarsat transcievers, he added.Pricing will vary according to distribution partner, who are expected to sell bundled offerings. “In general, voice calls will be under $1 per minute, which we think is competitive to 3G roaming calls,” Warehand said. “IP data service will range between €4 and €7 per megabyte, which we believe is also competitive. However, we expect all these rates to fall as a result of the bundled services our partners plan to offer.”Customers are free to choose their distributor, regardless of location. “They’re free to look for the best deal,” he said. One disadvantage of the service is the need to purchase a relatively large and expensive terminal to connect to the satellite service. The terminals range in size from a unit roughly as big as a laptop computer to one about half that, according to Warehand. Prices range from $1,500 to $3,000.No handsets are currently available, and Warehand said Inmarsat has no plans to offer them. Technology Industry