Leading international mobile satellite operator, Thuraya Telecommunications Company has launched its roaming service in the United States of America in partnership with the American mobile operator, T-Mobile. The service, which commenced on July 12, allows Thuraya subscribers to roam seamlessly with their Thuraya mobile numbers into the T-Mobile network that reaches 96 percent of Americans. Thuraya customers in the region can now make and receive calls, and also send and receive text messages (SMS). The Company’s GmPRS roaming service will be enabled afterwards on the T-Mobile network.

Mr. Tarek Shqairat, Director of Inter-Carrier Relations, Thuraya Telecommunications Company, said: “With more than 350 roaming partners worldwide, Thuraya is the only satellite operator offering roaming services over GSM networks. This facility is particularly beneficial to travelers who want to remain connected all the time.” Consequently, Thuraya subscribers enjoy ubiquitous coverage, even in areas outside the Thuraya satellite network.

Complementing the roaming service is Thuraya’s latest and the most advanced satellite phone – Thuraya XT-DUAL. This superior handheld features both satellite and GSM capabilities allowing users to alternate between Thuraya satellite network and any available GSM network. Furthermore, the handset supports Tri-Band GSM frequencies – 900, 1800 and 1900 – making it usable in the US and Canada.

T-Mobile USA, Inc. is the U.S. wireless operation of Deutsche Telecom AG, which is one of the largest telecommunications providers in the world with nearly 150 million customers worldwide. The T-Mobile brand is present in 11 European countries – Austria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Germany (as Telekom), Hungary, Macedonia, Montenegro, the Netherlands, Poland, Slovakia, and the United Kingdom – as well as the US, Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands. Globally, T-Mobile International subsidiaries have a combined total of nearly 150 million subscribers, making the company the world’s third-largest mobile-phone service provider by subscribers and the third-largest multinational after the UK’s Vodafone and Spain’s Telefónica.

As a leading mobile satellite services operator, Thuraya delivers innovative voice and data solutions in more than 140 countries across Europe, Africa, the Middle East, Asia and Australia.

Thuraya’s satellite communications solutions are used by people working in the energy, media, government, NGO and maritime sectors in remote locations outside the reach of terrestrial networks.

Since its service launch in 2001, Thuraya has sold in excess of 600,000 satellite handheld phones. Thuraya is the only company to offer a dual-mode satellite phone – the Thuraya XT-DUAL – a technologically superior handset that features both GSM and satellite capabilities. Thuraya also offers the Thuraya IP data modem, a secure and rapidly-deployable satellite broadband solution offering connection speeds up to 444 Kbps.

Established in 1997, Thuraya continues to serve humanity through developing superior products and solutions that provide the essential tools for optimal connectivity; never leaving anyone out of reach.