War Speeds Shift to New Phone Technology

The Persian Gulf War is popularizing some of today’s most esoteric telecommunication services while providing an early glimpse of advanced communications technologies expected by the end of the century.

Tightening travel restrictions and an increasing need to communicate business-plan changes caused by the war are forcing companies to turn to audio and video teleconferencing to meet with customers and colleagues.

American Telephone & Telegraph reported Wednesday that international video conferencing, the “Cadillac” of substitutes for long-distance travel, has shot up 75% since the war began. US Sprint, another of the nation’s Big Three long-distance phone companies, said bookings for its video conference services have tripled in the past week.

Similarly, Darome Inc., a leading telephone teleconferencing provider, and MCI Corp., the nation’s No. 2 long-distance phone company, said audio telephone conferences have jumped in the past week, in some cases as much as 20%.

Less obvious--but perhaps ultimately more important--is the boost the war is providing for the upcoming generation of global satellite communications expected to be available for commercial use within the next three to five years, analysts say.

The enormous potential of communications satellites has been brought home by the immediate television delivery of ongoing air raids and radar- and satellite-guided surgical bombings. Also adding to the cause was the dramatic audio hook-up maintained by Cable News Network through the initial allied attack on Baghdad.

“There’s no doubt that the war has accelerated our awareness of video and audio technology,” said Elliot Gold, director of TelesSpan, an Altadena-based telecommunications firm. “It can only spur commercial demand for these technologies.”

However, despite the demand, there is no absolute guarantee that crucial political and economic hurdles facing new satellite communication technologies can be cleared, others say.

“War is a catalyst. It has increased our faith in satellite mapping and monitoring activities,” said Jeff Charles of the Institute for the Future in Menlo Park. “But there is no straight pass between the concept and the implementation.”

Nevertheless, some upcoming systems appear poised to move forward.

At Motorola’s satellite development facility in Chandler, Ariz., officials said the cut-off of telephone service into Iraq and Kuwait underscores the importance of the global satellite communication system it hopes to have in place by 1996.

The $2.5-billion Motorola project, dubbed Iridium, calls for the launching of 77 low-orbiting satellites to provide wireless communications through a pocket-sized phone anywhere on the planet. This cellular-style personal communication system, unveiled late last year, would be compatible with all existing telephone systems. However, it would operate independently of them, allowing users to communicate--via both voice and computer--when traditional phone lines were out of reach or out of commission.

American Mobile Satellite Corp. in Washington is planning a 1994 unveiling of a satellite communications network in North America that can be used to monitor the location and condition of long-distance transportation carriers and their cargo.

This satellite would track the position of trucks, planes and trains. It also would detect--through “smart” sensors--problems with operation of the vehicles and the condition of any sensitive cargo. The information would be relayed back to headquarters, where the dispatcher could alert the driver, via the audio portion of the satellite network.

The official noted that since preparations for war began last August, after Iraq’s invasion of Kuwait, the Pentagon’s push for similar communications in remote areas has spurred development and production efforts.

A likely offshoot, she said, is a dramatic decline in the civilian prices of key hardware initially pioneered by the military.

Today, the war is forcing unprecedented numbers of phone customers to take advantage of the most sophisticated services now available.

Many major corporations have canceled or curbed international travel for fear of terrorism. That’s led record numbers of firms to schedule audio and video teleconferences.

Growth of Teleconferencing Source: TeleSpan, International Teleconferencing Assn., Institute for the Future