SEAMOBILE MAKES WIRELESS AVAILABLE ON THE HIGH SEAS

Traditional wireless carriers and mobile virtual network operators are rushing to fill every conceivable wireless market niche that has ever been described as “under-served,” to such a degree that it seems unlikely there are any hidden niches left to discover.

However, SeaMobile, a company with offices in Seattle, Fort Lauderdale and Paris, which is managed and funded by an all-star lineup of telecom industry veterans, is trying to hook one big niche that has always slipped from the wireless industry's grasp. The new service provider, which last week named Ericsson as one of its primary vendors, is using a network architecture that combines mobile, Wi-Fi, satellite, terrestrial and IP software technologies to deliver wireless voice and data services to cruise ships, ferries, private yachts, off-shore industrial platforms and container ships while they sail the open seas.

“It's the last frontier of wireless coverage, both a unique challenge and a unique opportunity,” said Jim Ellis, chief technology officer and vice president of mobile solutions for SeaMobile. Ellis formerly worked at McCaw Cellular Communications, Rogers Wireless and AT&T Wireless, the type of formidable resume that is common among SeaMobile's management team.

The firm's founders include former DSS Direct/DirectTV William D. Marks, who is CEO of SeaMobile; cable television entrepreneur William Marks Sr.; and former McCaw executive Jack Donohue. Several other members of the management team also worked at McCaw, including Chief Operating Officer Chere Heintzmann, formerly of Extend America, Qwest Wireless and McCaw. Nancy Brumfield, vice president of marketing, also served the same role at Extend America and McCaw.

The company has several wireless industry veterans on its board of directors and its executive committee as well, including three members of venture capital firm Ignition Partners, which is helping to fund the company.

The SeaMobile team will be running its service off core switches, base stations and other equipment supplied by Ericsson, along with its own multi-protocol, IP-based software to allow its network to be agnostic to users of GSM, CDMA or any other air interface.

Ellis said that in the example of providing service to passengers aboard a cruise ship, there would be an on-board network. “This will be very much like any kind of big, in-building network coverage,” he said.

An on-ship distributed antenna system will link directly to an airborne satellite for backhaul, then to a terrestrial satellite station, further connecting to wireline copper or fiber facilities, through the Ericsson core switch to the public switched telephone network.

SeaMobile also has more than 200 roaming agreements with wireless carriers worldwide to potentially allow users from multiple countries and networks to use their home carriers while at sea, Ellis said.

Only one other carrier, Cingular Wireless, has attempted to tap the niche of wireless users aboard ships at sea. Last December, Cingular, in a joint venture with the Maritime Telecommunications Network, announced deals with Royal Caribbean International and Celebrity Cruises to provide wireless to passengers on cruise ships. SeaMobile currently is talking to shipping industry customers, though it has yet to announce any deals.