July – An Ariane 5 rocket lifted Terrestar-1, the heaviest commercial satellite ever launched, into orbit to provide a fully integrated satellite-terrestrial mobile network leveraging TerreStar’s S-band mobile satellite service (MSS) spectrum. The launch was followed in September by the announcement that the company had teamed with AT&T to bring to market the first fully integrated satellite-mobile smartphone in the United States.

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Visit the SSPI Satellite Industry Timeline to tour the decades of the Satellite Era.

The SSPI Satellite Timeline is the first interactive site on the Web to chronicle the rich and diverse history of the commercial satellite industry. Launched in October 2007 – the 50th anniversary of Sputnik – the Timeline is a learning tool for satellite professionals, students, the news media and the innovative companies that make up the industry.