[08/16/07 – Satellite Today] TerreStar Networks Inc. selected IBM BladeCenter servers to design, build and operate TerreStar’s Internet Protocol (IP) fourth-generation terrestrial and satellite based communications network, IBM announced Aug. 15.

TerreStar will be one of the first mobile operators to install and operate the IBM BladeCenter HT platform running on Red Hat Enterprise Linux. The system is optimized for telecommunications companies to provide network bandwidth speeds up to 10 times greater than previously possible, IBM said.

"We needed the optimal platform that would allow us to move ahead and execute a [Voice Over Internet Protocol] solution to create our next generation voice service," Jeff Stern, vice president, service architecture and channel support, TerreStar, said in a statement.. "IBM BladeCenter offered unsurpassed performance, reliability and scalability.”

TerreStar, a subsidiary of Motient Corp., intends to build, own and operate North America’s first fourth-generation integrated mobile satellite and terrestrial communications network, to provide universal access and tailored applications over conventional wireless devices throughout North America. Service is scheduled to begin in November 2008.