Globe Wireless announced that it has successfully concluded a rigorous testing program for the new Iridium OpenPort maritime satcom system and is delivering units to customers. As the Charter Distribution partner for the Iridium OpenPort service, Globe conducted an extensive independent testing of Iridium OpenPort to verify that the product meets the highest degree of reliability expected by its maritime customers.

"We have given the Iridium OpenPort system a vigorous shakedown," said Frank Coles, President and CEO of Globe Wireless. Globe Wireless ran Iridium OpenPort through a full battery of performance and environmental tests to confirm Iridium OpenPort ruggedness for the harsh marine environment, including stress testing to verify the robustness during high traffic loading conditions.

"We did this testing to ensure that any equipment we install aboard our customer's ships would be reliable - we are aware of how difficult it is to re-visit ships to fix defective equipment. As a result, we believe we are able to provide our customers with a reliable, fully tested product," said Mr. Coles. "The Iridium engineering team has successfully resolved all beta testing and production ramp-up issues. Iridium OpenPort is now well-positioned to provide a cost effective, high-quality service for our customers. We are now moving forward with deliveries of Iridium OpenPort through our direct channels to fulfill the large backlog of orders from our customer around the world."

Additionally, Globe Wireless has implemented GlobeSecure, its advanced firewall for OpenPort. Mr. Coles explained, "We needed to ensure that our customers were fully protected from high cost exposure through unauthorized browsing. With GlobeSecure, customers can fully control Internet access through OpenPort. Shoreside firewall protection for OpenPort is unique to Globe Wireless - no other Iridium reseller offers this today."

Mr. Coles also said, "In conjunction with the release for Iridium OpenPort, we are releasing the upgrade programs for the older Inmarsat services. This, together with the GlobeMobile GSM solution, is a complete business and crew package for the shipping industry. This is a timely release given market conditions. Our customers will have an enhanced service at a fraction of the cost, and begin to save immediately."

Iridium OpenPort is the only truly global high-bandwidth marine satellite communication system with coverage over 100 percent of the Earth's surface, including Polar waters beyond the reach of geostationary satellites. Iridium OpenPort provides an unmatched value proposition of three independent phone lines and a separate scalable data circuit supporting speeds of 9.6 to 128 kilobits per second. The phone circuits and data port can be used simultaneously, and data rates can easily be adjusted up or down without any modifications to hardware or software. The low-profile, lightweight antenna array does not require a stabilized pedestal and is therefore less costly to purchase, install, and maintain.

About Globe Wireless

Globe Wireless is the world's leading provider of total solutions in the field of communications, operational and IT solutions to the maritime industry. Globe Wireless serves over 550 ship operators with over 9,300 ships using its products and services. Globe Wireless designs, builds, sells, installs, supports, and services all of the products and services that are offered to customers. Globe has a direct relationship with the customer and is able to "touch the ship" anywhere in the world at anytime.