As seen in the January 17, 2012, COMPTEL Connection

LightSquared
Headquarters Location: Reston, Va.
www.LightSquared.com

Q: What does your company do and how long has it been in operation?
A: In operation since July 2010, LightSquared’s mission is to revolutionize the U.S. wireless industry. With the creation of the first-ever, wholesale-only nationwide 4G-LTE network integrated with satellite coverage, LightSquared offers people the speed, value and reliability of universal connectivity, wherever they are in the United States. As a wholesale-only operator, LightSquared will deploy an open 4G wireless broadband network to be used by existing and new service providers to sell their own devices, applications and services – at a competitive cost and without retail competition from LightSquared. The deployment and operation of LightSquared’s network represent more than $14 billion of private investment over the next eight years.

Q: To what do you attribute your company’s success in the communications industry?
A: The current U.S. wireless industry is dominated by two incumbent carriers, limiting competition and keeping other players out of the market. LightSquared’s wholesale-only model is enabling a diverse group of companies – from wireline carriers to retailers to device manufacturers to content developers - to enter the wireless market and offer connectivity to their customers.  The pent-up demand is clear - we have signed more than 30 wholesale customers and don’t even have our network built yet.

Q: What have been the biggest obstacles your company has faced in the marketplace?
A: LightSquared is deploying a new technology on a new frequency band and on a dual-mode network – something no other company has ever done before.  So we clearly have some challenges.  But we are also very comfortable that we’ll be more than able to meet these challenges.  We have the chipset, we have the devices, we have an accelerated deployment plan, we’ve signed more than 30 wholesale customers to date and we’re in serious talks with a dozen more. So clearly our business model is addressing the pent-up demand for extremely competitive, wholesale network connectivity.

Q: What have been some of your company’s most recent achievements (new customer wins, new service/product deployment, etc.)?
A: As of December, 2011, we have signed over 30 wholesale customers.   We’ve also announced a diverse ecosystem of wireless devices that will run on LightSquared’s 4G network – from USB modems and wireless routers to smartphones and tablets to be built by Sharp, a global consumer electronics powerhouse.

Q: Why is it important for your company to be a COMPTEL member?
A: COMPTEL offers LightSquared the ability to network and build relationships with many members of our wireless ecosystem, including prospective wireline service providers looking to offer affordable wireless services to their customers and network infrastructure equipment suppliers that will be critical to ensuring LightSquared offers a best-in-class network to its customers.