http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thuraya

http://www.humanedgetech.com/news.php?id=16244

Basically, calls as cheap as $0.20 or $0.40 a minute, although $1 a minute is more typical.

Thuraya 3 is going to cover South America in 2009.

The irony – goddamnit – is that Thuraya 2 misses South Africa and Reykjavik.

Anyway, interesting to note – it’s a consortium of African and Middle Eastern investors that made this happen. And they got it right.

Very interesting.