connectivity services and content may be delivered. The industry ecosystem structure is heavily influ- Content and services layer enced by the high cost of building and rolling out the infrastructure, and therefore the fixed initial cost. While national satellites may operate by licensing Connectivity retail layer frequency from a national agency, these players usu- ally find most local markets too small for sufficient Infrastructure layer return on their investments. Most of these services are therefore entirely funded or subsidised as part of a government broadband roll-out strategy. International satellite infrastructure players on the other hand need Subscriber/End-user 4 Iridium Extreme Satellite Phone, Iridium Satellite Communications. Broadband Telecommunications Technologies and Management to secure the necessary frequency spectrum through the ITU within specifically set aside bands. Again, the high cost of network build-up, combined with small-sized, low-income mar- kets, means that the return on investment is low. As a result there is not much interest in these systems from commercial operators. Regardless, there are a number of players each active in a specific segment of the market, from LEO to MEO and GEO. This ensures competition, and price stabilisation for service subscribers. At the retail layer, most infrastructure players provide capacity on a wholesale basis to national operators. This is mostly due to the international character of infrastructure businesses and the necessity to comply with service provision policies of national governments. At times satellite services are packaged with terrestrial service through a national operator: for example Telstra resells Iridium services in Australia alongside other products. The contents and services layer consists of applications served to a general broadband market, as well as those for the satellite niche market. Iridium for example maintains a specific weather application for the maritime market. Shipping and mining sectors are major customers of 