ICO system

The ICO system is a satellite-based communication system for mobile voice communication.

Initiated by ICO Global Communications Ltd, the ICO project uses 10 MEO satellites orbiting the globe at an altitude of 10,400 kilometers. The system is designed to support voice, data and fax communications and to enable communications from any position on the globe using cell phones.

The uplink from the ground stations to the ICO satellites is at 5.2 GHz, and the downlink in the reverse direction is at 7 GHz. The ICO system operates without an Inter Satellite Link( ISL), instead establishing links via the ground stations. The bit rate is 4.8 kbit/s.