{"id":78677,"date":"2014-01-28T01:00:29","date_gmt":"2014-01-27T17:00:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp-productionenv-bjg9h2g2bgg5b8aa.southeastasia-01.azurewebsites.net\/news\/thurayas-satsleeve-for-android-launch-brings-mss-to-top-smartphone-models\/"},"modified":"2014-01-28T01:00:29","modified_gmt":"2014-01-27T17:00:29","slug":"thurayas-satsleeve-for-android-launch-brings-mss-to-top-smartphone-models","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/news\/thurayas-satsleeve-for-android-launch-brings-mss-to-top-smartphone-models\/","title":{"rendered":"Thuraya\u2019s SatSleeve for Android Launch Brings MSS to Top Smartphone Models"},"content":{"rendered":"<\/p>\n

[Via Satellite 01-27-2014] Thuraya<\/b>\u2019s inclusion of the Samsung<\/b> Galaxy S3 and Galaxy S4 Android phones now makes the SatSleeve compatible with the majority of today\u2019s top selling smartphones. The SatSleeve\u2019s ability to convert a regular mobile device into a satellite phone has been very well received by the market. Previously only connectable with Apple<\/b>\u2019s iPhone, this new offering enables Thuraya to sell to a much larger market.<\/p>\n

\u201cTo date, we have sold out our initial stock of the first edition of the SatSleeve for the iPhone within the first days of its release,\u201d said Randy Roberts, vice president of innovation at Thuraya. \u201cThe successful launch of the SatSleeve over 2013, coupled with positive product reviews globally and customer demand were strong and we have exceeded our sales targets for the year. As result, we have upped the production for 2014 due to increased sales forecasts.\u201d<\/p>\n

In October 2013 Counterpoint <\/b>highlighted the iPhone as the bestselling phone globally. Apple reported 33.8 million iPhones sold during fourth quarter 2013, a record growth rate of 26 percent. Samsung\u2019s Galaxy phones, however, have gained significant traction in the smartphone market. As of Jan. 13, 2014, the company\u2019s flagship smartphone line, the Galaxy S3, along with earlier models the S2 and S1, exceeded 100 million unit sales. Of this, 40 million units were Galaxy S3s.<\/p>\n

\u201cAccording to a recent report by Gartner<\/b>, total sales of Android-based devices are on pace to reach 1.1 billion by end-2014,\u201d said Roberts. \u201cWe have traditionally had a strong customer base in the Middle East, however we are now seeing demand from customers based around the world traveling across our satellite footprint including Europe, Africa and the Asia Pacific region.\u201d<\/p>\n

Gartner also points out that by 2017, 75 percent of Android sales are expected to come from emerging markets. Some of these regions currently lack a strong mobile user presence, which, though being reason for such expansive predicted growth, does present a challenge to companies like Thuraya.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe success of the SatSleeve is dependent on the penetration of smartphones, so markets with relatively low smartphone penetration are lagging [behind] more developed markets,\u201d said Roberts. \u201cWe see this as an opportunity and are forming partnerships with leading mobile operators such as Smart Communications <\/b>in the Philippines and SoftBank Mobile <\/b>in Japan, among others, to drive new channels of revenue. We are also exploring retail partnerships across the United Arab Emirates through Virgin Megastore<\/b>, Dubai Duty Free <\/b>and Qatar Duty Free <\/b>to make the SatSleeve available to more corporate travelers and consumers. We will be making more announcements about new distribution channels in new markets later in the year.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

\"Samsung
Samsung\u2019s Galaxy S series reached 100 million sales. Photo: Samsung<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>\n

Thuraya has been pursuing an aggressive schedule to keep pace with mobile trends. According to Roberts, the SatSleeve for Android has been in development for more than a year. While he doesn\u2019t expect the SatSleeve to replace standard satellite phones entirely, the increase in forms of mobile satellite service (MSS) solutions definitely make the market more competitive.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe SatSleeve is an evolution of the traditional satellite phone,\u201d said Roberts. \u201cWith it, we are blurring the lines between MSS and the terrestrial sector to make satellite combinations more accessible for everyone. Providing the SatSleeve to consumers allows them to continue to use the smartphone and applications they use everyday as they travel outside of terrestrial coverage and into Thuraya\u2019s network.\u201d<\/p>\n

Apple and Samsung products dominate Counterpoint\u2019s top 10 smartphone list as of October 2013. Nokia<\/b> does appear twice on the list, and Microsoft<\/b>\u2019s Windows 8 phone, though not a top 10, remains as a notable player. While no new devices have been discussed for SatSleeve pairing, Thuraya is certainly keeping an eye on ways to expand.<\/p>\n

\u201cThuraya is open to developing the SatSleeve for other smartphone models,\u201d said Roberts. \u201cWe have chosen to work with the iPhone and the Samsung Galaxy because of their immense popularity and appeal. Other plans would be announced as we progress.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

[Via Satellite 01-27-2014] Thuraya\u2019s inclusion of the Samsung Galaxy S3 and Galaxy S4 Android phones now makes the SatSleeve compatible with the majority of today\u2019s top selling smartphones. The SatSleeve\u2019s ability to convert a regular mobile device into a satellite phone has been very well received by the market. Previously only connectable with Apple\u2019s iPhone, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":78678,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-78677","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/78677"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=78677"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/78677\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/78678"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=78677"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=78677"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=78677"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}