Satellite mobile communications from the year 2000

There is a strong probability of a mobile cellular telephone system based on between 24 and 77 satellites in low (1000 km) Earth orbit, and accessible worldwide by hand-held phones. The actual market for this service is widely spread in application and geographic location, and its value is more than the system´s cost. A LEO system would be a very serious competitive threat to service providers with geostationary satellites. There are still formidable technological and regulatory hurdles to overcome, but they are not insurmountable