What changed in this filing

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Item 1. Business

2022-02-25 compared with 2021-03-04 · 110 added, 128 removed, 227 unchanged (51% of the section changed)

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Recent Developments

In March 2020, the World Health Organization declared the outbreak of a novel coronavirus (“COVID-19”) a global pandemic.

Various levels of governmental agencies and authorities have taken measures to reduce the spread of COVID-19, including “stay at home” orders, social distancing and closures of non-essential businesses.

The success of our business depends on our global operations, including the performance of our satellites and ground stations as well as our supply chain and consumer demand, among other things.

As a result of COVID-19, we have experienced a reduction in the volume of sales of our subscriber equipment, particularly from our customers that operate in the oil and gas industry, have received requests for service pricing concessions from certain customers, and expect an impact on the ability of certain of our customers to pay outstanding balances.

Our results of operations for the year ended December 31, 2020 partially reflect this impact;

however, we expect that this trend may continue and the full extent of the impact is unknown.

In recent months, some governmental agencies have lifted certain restrictions.

However, if customer demand continues to be low, our future equipment sales, subscriber activations and sales margin will be impacted.

We have implemented several measures to minimize the impact on our operations and sustain our liquidity position, including:

• Receiving economic relief and support under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (“CARES”) Act, including a $5.0 million forgivable payroll protection program loan (the "PPP Loan") and the deferral of certain payroll taxes,

• Refocusing internal resources on high-value opportunities, such as working with federal agencies that may require our equipment and services in times of crisis,

• Working with our product manufacturers to ensure we will continue to have sufficient inventory levels on hand to meet consumer demand, and

• Supporting both consumer and commercial customers, particularly those that operate in the retail and oil and gas industries, to adjust pricing where necessary, whether under e-commerce promotions or temporary service pricing concessions.

The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted and may continue to impact our business.

At the beginning of the pandemic, we experienced a reduction in the volume of sales of subscriber equipment, received requests for service pricing concessions from certain customers, and were impacted by certain of our customers not being able to pay outstanding balances.

During 2021, we saw a recovery in our business, specifically an increase in the volume of sales of IoT equipment and lower subscriber churn for SPOT and IoT.

We also pursued various opportunities to mitigate the risks and uncertainties resulting from COVID-19, including:

• Receiving economic relief and support under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (“CARES”) Act, including the receipt of a $5.0 million loan under the Paycheck Protection Program (the "PPP Loan") and the deferral of certain payroll taxes,

• Electing pension relief under the American Rescue Plan Act,

• Evaluating our eligibility for the Employee Retention Tax Credit program,

• Refocusing internal resources on high-value opportunities, and

• Working with our product manufacturers to ensure we will continue to have sufficient inventory levels on hand to meet consumer demand.

In June 2021, the Small Business Association ("SBA") fully approved our request for forgiveness of all amounts outstanding, including interest, under the PPP Loan.

There are a number of uncertainties that could impact our future results of operations, including the effectiveness of COVID-19 mitigation measures;

the duration of the pandemic;

global economic conditions;

changes to our operations;

changes in consumer confidence, behaviors and spending;

work from home trends;

and the sustainability of supply chains.

Gateway Expansion

During 2021, we acquired the remaining ownership of our joint venture in South Korea and also took over the operations of our three gateways in Australia that were previously operated by an Independent Gateway Operator ("IGO").

We purchased assets, including gateway licenses, from these IGOs.

We commenced leases for additional gateways around the world and expect this expansion to continue during 2022.

We also made significant progress on our initiative to upgrade certain gateway equipment, including new antennas and appliques, to improve our ability to pursue significant new opportunities to deploy our network assets as technologies and customer needs evolve and to ensure our network performance continues to excel as these opportunities increase demand on our capacity.

Global Chip Shortage

The recent chip shortage has negatively impacted our manufacturing processes, including causing delays in and increased costs of sourcing certain component parts.

We have mitigated some of the impact of these shortages, but there continues to be uncertainties around our ability to produce equipment timely and at reasonable prices, which could negatively impact our revenue and profitability.

Globalstar System

Satellite Network

Our constellation of Low Earth Orbit ("LEO") satellites includes second-generation satellites and certain first-generation satellites, which are currently being used as in-orbit spares.

We also have one on-ground spare second-generation satellite that we may include in a future launch.

Our constellation of Low Earth Orbit ("LEO") satellites includes second-generation satellites and certain first-generation satellites.

We also have one on-ground spare second-generation satellite that we plan to launch in the near future.

We designed our satellite network to maximize the probability that at least one satellite is visible from any point on the Earth's surface between the latitudes 70° north and 70° south.

We designed our second-generation satellites to last twice as long in space, have 40% greater capacity and be built at a significantly lower cost compared to our first-generation satellites.

We achieved this longer life by increasing the solar array and battery capacity, using a larger fuel tank, adding redundancy for key satellite equipment, and improving radiation specifications and additional lot level testing for all susceptible electronic components, in order to account for the accumulated dosage of radiation encountered during a 15-year mission at the operational altitude of the satellites.

The second-generation satellites use passive S-band antennas on the body of the spacecraft providing additional shielding for the active amplifiers which are located inside the spacecraft, unlike the first-generation amplifiers that were located on the outside as part of the active antenna array.

Each satellite has a high degree of on-board subsystem redundancy, an on-board fault detection system and isolation and recovery for safe and quick risk mitigation.

Our goal is to provide service levels and call or message success rates equal to or better than our MSS competitors so our products and services are attractive to potential customers.

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GEO satellite signals must travel approximately 42,000 additional miles on average, which introduces considerable delay and signal degradation to GEO calls.

In February 2022, we entered into a satellite procurement agreement (the "Procurement Agreement") with Macdonald, Dettwiler and Associates Corporation (the "Vendor") pursuant to which we will acquire 17 satellites that will replenish our existing constellation and ensure long-term continuity of our mobile satellite services.

We are acquiring the satellites to provide continuous satellite services to the potential customer under the Terms Agreement (defined below), as well as services to our current and future customers.

We have committed to purchase these new satellites for a total contract price of $327.0 million and have the option to purchase additional satellites at a lower per unit cost, subject to certain conditions.

The technical specifications and design of these new satellites are similar to our current second-generation satellites.

Rocket Lab USA, Inc.

is the Vendor’s satellite bus subcontractor under the Procurement Agreement.

The agreement requires the Vendor to deliver the initial 17 new satellites by 2025, all of which are expected to be launched by the end of 2025.

Under the Terms Agreement, the counterparty is required to reimburse 95 % of the capital expenditures and certain other costs incurred for the new satellites.

Ground Network

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We have positioned our gateways to provide coverage over most of the Earth's land and human population and continue to evaluate and expand our gateway footprint to optimize coverage.

We own and operate the majority of these gateways and the rest are owned by independent gateway operators ("IGOs").

Each of our gateways has multiple antennas that communicate with our satellites and pass communications seamlessly between antenna beams and satellites as the satellites traverse the gateways, thereby reflecting the signals from our users' terminals to our gateways.

Once a satellite acquires a signal from an end-user, the Globalstar System authenticates the user and establishes the voice or data channel to complete the call to the public switched telephone network (“PSTN”), a cellular or another wireless network or the internet for data communications including Commercial IoT.

In 2019, we signed a contract with MIL-SAT LLC for the procurement and production of new antennas for certain of our gateways around the world, and all antennas have been delivered under the terms of that contract.

Although we currently do not have any remaining contractual obligations with MIL-SAT, we expect to purchase additional antennas in the future directly from the manufacturer.

We believe that our terrestrial gateways provide a number of advantages over the in-orbit switching used by our main competitor, including better call quality, reduced call latency and convenient, localized phone numbers for inbound and outbound calling.

We also believe that our network's design enables faster and more cost-effective system maintenance and upgrades because the system's software and much of its hardware are located on the ground.

Over the past few years, we have procured and installed new antennas at all of our new and existing gateways around the world.

We believe that our network's design enables faster and more cost-effective system maintenance and upgrades because the system's software and much of its hardware are located on the ground.

Our multiple gateways allow us to reconfigure our system quickly to extend another gateway's coverage to make up for lost coverage from a disabled gateway or to handle increased call capacity resulting from surges in demand.

Our ground network includes our ground equipment, which uses patented CDMA technology to permit communication to multiple satellites.

Patented receivers in our handsets track the pilot channel and signaling channel as well as three additional communications channels simultaneously.

Compared to other satellite and network architectures, we offer superior call clarity with virtually no discernible delay.

Our system architecture provides full frequency re-use.

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In addition, we have developed a proprietary technology for our SPOT and Commercial IoT services.

We designed our second-generation ground network to provide our customers with enhanced services featuring speeds up to 72 kbps as well as increased capacity, when combined with our next-generation products.

The second-generation ground network is an Internet

protocol multimedia subsystem ("IMS") based solution providing such industry standard services as voice, internet, email and short message services ("SMS").

Communications Products and Services

We currently provide the following communications services:

• two-way voice communication and data transmissions using mobile or fixed devices, including our GSP-1700 phone, two generations of our Sat-Fi ® and other fixed and data-only devices ("Duplex");

• two-way voice communication and data transmissions via our GSP-1600 and GSP-1700 phone ("Duplex");

• one-way or two-way communication and data transmissions using mobile devices, including our SPOT family of products, such as SPOT X ® , SPOT Gen4 TM and SPOT Trace ® , that transmit messages and the location of the device ("SPOT");

• one-way data transmissions using a mobile or fixed device that transmits its location and other information to a central monitoring station, including our commercial IoT products, such as our battery- and solar-powered SmartOne, STX-3 and ST100 ("Commercial IoT");

• engineering services to assist certain customers in developing new applications to operate on our network, enhancements to our ground network and other communication services using our MSS and terrestrial spectrum licenses ("Engineering and Other").

• engineering services to assist certain customers (including our customer under the Terms Agreement (defined below)) in developing new applications to operate on our network, enhancements to our ground network and other communication services using our MSS and terrestrial spectrum licenses ("Engineering and Other").

We compete aggressively on price.

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As technological advancements are made, we continue to explore opportunities to develop new products and provide new services over our network to meet the needs of our existing and prospective customers.

We are currently pursuing initiatives that we expect to expand our satellite communications business by effectively leveraging our network capabilities and distribution relationships.

Among our current initiatives is the development of a two-way reference design module to expand our Commercial IoT offerings.

We are currently pursuing initiatives that we expect will expand our satellite communications business and more effectively utilize the capacity of our network assets.

These initiatives include evaluating our product and service offerings in light of the shift in demand across the MSS industry from full Duplex voice and data services to IoT-enabled devices.

To align our business model with this evolution, we have temporarily ceased sales of and services to subscribers for certain Duplex devices, such as Sat-Fi2®.

We are currently evaluating opportunities for these devices relative to other product and service offerings as well as the capacity required to support these devices relative to other possible uses for the capacity.

Integrated with this assessment is the development of a two-way reference design module to expand our Commercial IoT offerings, which is among our other current initiatives.

Our Commercial IoT use cases continue to expand, including deployments that support environmentally friendly initiatives.

Recent deployments include remote monitoring of fluid levels and tanks, which replaces the need for motor vehicles to access these assets, as well as asset monitoring solutions for solar lighting and other renewable energy sources.

The specialized needs of our global customers span many industries.

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construction;

animal tracking;

and transportation.

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We offer our services for use only with equipment designed to work on our network.

Subscribers typically pay an initial activation fee, a monthly usage fee for a fixed or unlimited number of minutes and fees for additional services such as voicemail, call forwarding, short messaging, email, data compression and internet access.

Extra fees may also apply for non-voice services, roaming and long-distance.

We regularly monitor our service offerings in accordance with customer demands and market changes and offer pricing plans such as bundled minutes, annual plans and unlimited plans.

We offer the GSP-1700 phone, which includes a user-friendly color LCD screen and a variety of accessories.

Subscribers typically pay an initial activation fee, a usage fee for a fixed or unlimited number of minutes, and fees for additional services such as voicemail, call forwarding, short messaging, email, data compression and internet access.

We regularly monitor our service offerings and rate plans in accordance with customer demands and market changes and offer pricing plans such as bundled minutes, annual plans and unlimited plans.

We offer the GSP-1600 and GSP-1700 phones.

Both phones include Qualcomm Incorporated's ("Qualcomm") patented CDMA technology, which we believe provides superior voice quality when compared to competitors' handsets.

The GSP-1700 phone includes a user-friendly color LCD screen and a variety of accessories.

We believe that the GSP-1700 is among the smallest, lightest and least-expensive satellite phones.

We are the only MSS provider using Qualcomm Incorporated's ("Qualcomm") patented CDMA technology, which we believe provides superior voice quality when compared to competitors' handsets.

We no longer manufacture the GSP-1700 phone.

Instead, we sell refurbished GSP-1700

phones to new subscribers through our existing distribution channels.

These phones are generally obtained through a buyback program that we have in place to purchase devices from deactivated subscribers, or subscribers that have upgraded to our Sat-Fi ® device, in order to address demand for handsets.

We offer another voice and data solution, Sat-Fi2 ® , which is the next-generation model of our original Sat-Fi ® .

Sat-Fi2 ® is the first product to operate using our second-generation ground infrastructure, resulting in higher data speeds, enhanced applications and improved performance.

With Sat-Fi2 ® , our customers can use their Wi-Fi-enabled smartphones and tablets to send and receive communications via the Globalstar System when traveling beyond cellular coverage.

We believe Sat-Fi2 ® provides fast and affordable mobile satellite data speeds.

Through a convenient smartphone app that enables connectivity between Wi-Fi-enabled devices and Sat-Fi ® satellite hot spots, subscribers in range of a Sat-Fi2 ® device can easily send and receive email and SMS messages and make voice calls from their own device at any time.

Fixed Voice and Data Satellite Communications Services and Equipment and Data Modem Services and Equipment

Among other places, we provide fixed voice and data services in rural villages, at remote industrial, commercial and residential sites and on ships at sea.

Fixed voice and data satellite communications services are an attractive alternative to mobile satellite communications services in environments where multiple users will access the services within a defined geographic area and cellular or ground phone service is not available.

Our fixed voice and data service plans are similar to our mobile voice and data plans and offer similar flexibility.

In addition to data utilization through fixed and mobile services described above, we offer data-only services through Duplex devices with two-way transmission capabilities.

Duplex asset-tracking applications enable customers to directly control their remote assets and perform complex monitoring activities.

We offer asynchronous and packet data service in all of our Duplex territories.

Customers can use our products to access the internet, corporate virtual private networks and other customer-specific data centers.

Our satellite data modems can be activated under any of our current pricing plans.

We no longer manufacture the GSP-1600 and GSP-1700 phones.

The majority of our phone sales are refurbished and are generally obtained through a buyback program that we have in place to purchase devices from deactivated subscribers, or subscribers that have upgraded to other devices.

Product Distribution

Our sales group is responsible for conducting direct sales with key accounts and for managing indirect agent, dealer and reseller relationships.

Our typical dealer is a communications services business-to-business equipment retailer.

In addition to buying through our distribution managers, agents, dealers and resellers, customers also place orders through our existing sales force and through our direct e-commerce website.

Our sales group is responsible for conducting direct sales with key accounts and for managing partner relationships.

Customers also place orders through our existing sales force and through our direct e-commerce website.

SPOT Consumer Retail Products

The SPOT product family has initiated approximately 8,200 rescues since its launch in 2007.

Averaging nearly two rescues per day, SPOT delivers affordable and reliable satellite-based connectivity and real-time GPS tracking to hundreds of thousands of users, completely independent of cellular coverage.

We are not aware of any other competitive offering that can match the life-saving record of our SPOT family of products.

As we continue to innovate and grow the SPOT family of products, we are committed to providing affordable, life-saving products to an expanding target market of millions of people globally.

SPOT delivers affordable and reliable satellite-based connectivity and real-time GPS tracking to hundreds of thousands of users, completely independent of cellular coverage.

We differentiate ourselves from other MSS providers by offering affordable, high-utility mobile satellite products that appeal to both businesses and the mainstream consumer market.

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Our vertical integration results in decreased pre-production costs, greater quality assurance and shorter time to market for our retail consumer products.

SPOT Satellite GPS Messenger

We began commercial sales of the first SPOT products and services when we introduced the SPOT Personal Tracker in 2007.

We continue to innovate this product and have released multiple generations of our SPOT Satellite GPS Messenger to the market.

The most recent generations of SPOT devices which we currently sell include SPOT Gen4 TM and SPOT X ® .

Compared to earlier generations of our SPOT Satellite GPS Messenger, SPOT Gen4 TM offers enhanced functionality with more tracking features in a new mapping interface and improved product specifications for water resistance.

The product also enables users to transmit predefined messages to a specific preprogrammed email address, phone or data device, including requests for assistance and “SOS” messages in the event of an emergency.

SPOT X ® , which was launched in May 2018, is our first two-way SPOT Satellite GPS Messenger with keyboard functionality allowing subscribers to send and receive SMS messages and improved tracking and SOS functions.

An upgraded version of SPOT X ® was launched in September 2019 with enhanced performance and features, including the flexibility to use the SPOT X ® device to connect to a smartphone via Bluetooth® wireless technology through the SPOT X ® app to send and receive satellite messages.

We target our SPOT Satellite GPS Messenger to recreational and commercial markets that require personal tracking, emergency location and messaging solutions that operate beyond the reach of terrestrial wireless and wireline coverage.

Using our network and web-based mapping software, this device provides consumers with the ability to trace a path geographically or map the location of individuals or equipment.

SPOT Satellite GPS Messenger products and services are available virtually everywhere through our product distribution channels and our direct e-commerce website.

We currently sell SPOT Gen4 TM , SPOT X ® and SPOT Trace ® .

SPOT Gen4 TM offers enhanced tracking features and is also water resistant.

The product enables users to transmit predefined messages to a specific preprogrammed email address, phone or data device, including requests for assistance and “SOS” messages in the event of an emergency.

SPOT X ® is a two-way SPOT device with keyboard functionality allowing subscribers to send and receive SMS messages.

SPOT X ® connects to a smartphone via Bluetooth® wireless technology through the SPOT X ® app to send and receive satellite messages.

SPOT Trace ® is a cost-effective, anti-theft and asset-tracking device.

SPOT Trace ® ensures cars, motorcycles, boats, ATVs, snowmobiles and other valuable assets are where they need to be, notifying owners via email or text anytime movement is detected, using 100% satellite technology to provide location-based messaging and emergency notification for on or off the grid communications.

We target our SPOT devices to recreational and commercial markets that require personal tracking, emergency location and messaging solutions that operate beyond the reach of terrestrial wireless and wireline coverage.

Using our network and web-based mapping software, these devices provide consumers with the ability to trace a path geographically or map the location of individuals or equipment.

SPOT products and services are available through our product distribution channels and our direct e-commerce website.

Product Distribution

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We have distribution relationships with a number of "Big Box" retailers and other similar distribution channels, including Amazon, Bass Pro Shops, Cabela's, Camping World, Gander Outdoors, REI, Sportsman's Warehouse, Academy, and West Marine.

We also sell SPOT products and services directly using our existing sales force and through our direct e-commerce website, www.findmespot.com, as well as through certain of our IGOs.

Commercial IoT One-Way Transmission Products

We also sell SPOT products and services directly using our existing sales force and through our direct e-commerce website, www.findmespot.com.

Commercial IoT Transmission Products

Commercial IoT service is currently a one-way data service from an IoT device over the Globalstar System that can be used to track and monitor assets.

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The appliqué-equipped gateways provide coverage over vast areas of the globe.

The small size of the devices makes them attractive for use in tracking asset shipments, monitoring unattended remote assets, trailer tracking and mobile security.

The small size of the IoT devices makes them attractive for use in tracking asset shipments, monitoring unattended remote assets, trailer tracking and mobile security.

Current users include various governmental agencies, including the Federal Emergency Management Agency (“FEMA”), the U.S.

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Satellite Transmitter Modules and Chips

We offer small satellite transmitter modules, such as the STX-3 and ST100, and chips, such as the ASIC, which enable an integrator’s products to access our Commercial IoT network.

We offer small satellite transmitter modules, such as the STX-3 and ST100, and chips, such as our proprietary ASIC, which enable an integrator’s products to access our network.

We have sales arrangements with major resellers to market our IoT services, including some value-added resellers that integrate our modules into their proprietary solutions designed to meet certain specialized niche market applications.

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The ST100 offers a customizable approach to new commercial IoT product innovations and can be used by simply adding power, a mechanical enclosure and configuring the settings within the device firmware.

For more advanced technical requirements, third parties can write their own firmware on the ST100 and utilize Globalstar APIs, Bluetooth® wireless technology and the serial connector to expand the use of the board and integrate it with other devices or hardware.

For more advanced technical requirements, third parties can write their own firmware on the ST100 and utilize Bluetooth® wireless technology and the serial connector to expand the use of the board and integrate it with other devices or hardware.

The ASIC provides a single chip one-way solution that can be embedded in a customer's owns solution.

SmartOne Asset Managers

We also offer complete products that utilize the STX-3 and ST100 transmitter modules.

We also offer complete products that utilize the STX-3 transmitter module and our ASIC chip.

Our Commercial IoT units, including the enterprise-grade SmartOne family of asset-ready tracking units, are used worldwide by industrial, commercial and government customers.

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Partnering with existing third party technology providers, we are developing IoT products to connect existing and new users and accelerate deployment of an expanded Globalstar IoT product suite.

Launched in March 2018, our SmartOne Solar™ device was the first of these products.

It is solar-powered and supports similar functionality to our SmartOne suite of products without the need to recharge batteries or line power the device over an expected life of up to ten years.

We also offer SmartOne Solar™, which is solar-powered and supports similar functionality to our SmartOne suite of products without the need to recharge batteries or line power the device over an expected life of up to ten years.

These features will result in a longer field life than existing devices.

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The SmartOne Solar™ also has unparalleled safety and environmental certifications including ATEX, IECEx, North America (NEC & CEC), IP68/69K, and HERO.

Future Developments

We have other initiatives to expand our Commercial IoT offerings, including the development of our enablement suite and a two-way reference design module.

The enablement suite represents a new approach to the architecture and software design for our future products.

It is based on Bluetooth ® Low Energy ("BLE") technology for most module communication and has a software stack that exposes a unified API.

This approach gives application developers flexibility in developing edge platform applications aimed at custom IoT solutions.

Markets for edge platform applications include alternative energy, agriculture, industrial monitoring and traditional markets such as oil and gas.

Product Distribution

The reseller channel for Commercial IoT equipment and service is comprised primarily of value-added resellers and commercial communications equipment companies that retain and bill clients directly, outside of our billing system.

Many of our resellers specialize in niche vertical markets where high-use customers are concentrated.

our resellers specialize in niche vertical markets where high-use customers are concentrated.

We expect that demand for our Commercial IoT products and services will increase as more applications are developed and deployed that utilize our technology.

We are also developing Commercial IoT products that support two-way communications allowing for both tracking and control of assets.

Engineering and Other

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These services include hardware and software designs to develop specific applications operating over our network, as well as the installation of gateways and antennas.

In February 2020, we entered into an agreement (i) providing for a potential customer to pay us for non-recurring engineering (NRE) services in connection with the assessment of a potential service utilizing certain of our assets and capacity, and (ii) setting forth the primary terms for the potential development and operation of the service (the “Terms Agreement”).

The Terms Agreement does not provide for material payments to us or impose material obligations on us unless, among other things, we and the potential customer have achieved certain technical milestones.

In February 2020, we entered into an agreement (i) providing for a customer to pay us for non-recurring engineering (NRE) services in connection with the assessment of a potential service utilizing certain of our assets and capacity, and (ii) setting forth the primary terms for the potential development and operation of the service (the “Terms Agreement”).

The Terms Agreement includes certain binding protective provisions, including an exclusivity provision not affecting current services, access rights related to the affected assets, certain information rights and certain provisions for future financings.

The Terms Agreement may be terminated by the customer at any time in its sole discretion.

Independent Gateway Operators

Our wholesale operations encompass primarily bulk sales of wholesale minutes to IGOs around the globe.

IGOs maintain their own subscriber bases that are mostly exclusive to us and promote their own service plans.

The IGO system allows us to expand in regions that hold significant growth potential but are harder to serve without sufficient operational scale or where local regulatory requirements do not permit us to operate directly.

As of December 31, 2020, we had four IGOs that own gateways in Australia, South Korea, Russia and Turkey.

Except for Globalstar Asia Pacific, our joint venture in South Korea in which we hold a 49% equity interest, we have no financial interest in these IGOs and conduct business with them through arms’ length contracts for wholesale minutes of service.

During 2020, we entered into an agreement to acquire the outstanding 51% equity interest in our joint venture in South Korea and expect the acquisition to close in 2021.

Spectrum and Regulatory Structure

We benefit from a world-wide allocation of radio frequency spectrum in the international radio frequency tables administered by the International Telecommunications Union (“ITU”).

We benefit from a worldwide allocation of radio frequency spectrum in the international radio frequency tables administered by the International Telecommunications Union (“ITU”).

Access to this globally harmonized spectrum enables us to design satellites, networks and terrestrial infrastructure enhancements more cost effectively because the products and services can be deployed and sold worldwide.

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In the United States, the Federal Communications Commission ("FCC") has authorized us to operate between 1610-1618.725 MHz for “Uplink” communications from mobile earth terminals to our satellites and between 2483.5-2500 MHz for “Downlink” communications from our satellites to our mobile earth terminals.

The FCC has also authorized us to operate our domestic gateways with our first-generation satellites in the 5091-5250 and 6875-7055 MHz bands.

Three of our subsidiaries hold our FCC licenses.

Globalstar Licensee LLC holds our MSS license.

GUSA Licensee LLC (“GUSA”) is authorized by the FCC to distribute mobile and fixed subscriber terminals and to operate gateways in the United States.

GUSA holds the licenses for our gateways in Texas, Florida and Alaska.

Another subsidiary, GCL Licensee LLC (“GCL”), holds an FCC license to operate a gateway in Puerto Rico.

GCL is also subject to regulation by the Puerto Rican Telecommunications Regulatory Board.

Our prior Non-Geostationary Satellite Orbit (“NGSO”) satellite constellation license issued by the FCC is valid until October 2024.

This license applies only to our continued use of our first-generation satellites.

The FCC has also authorized us to operate our domestic gateways with our first and second-generation satellites in the 5091-5250 and 6875-7055 MHz bands.

We licensed and registered our second-generation satellites in France.

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We have redundant satellite operation control facilities in Covington, Louisiana, Milpitas, California and Aussaguel, France.

The frequency assignments filed on the behalf of Globalstar by the French National Frequencies Agency (“ANFR”), with the ITU in 2009, have been recorded in the Master international Frequency Register ("MIFR").

This recording of the Globalstar frequency assignments in the MIFR provides international recognition of these assignments and facilitates the use of these assignments while the frequency coordination process with the two remaining systems is completed.

During 2020, our French authorizations to provide MSS and operate the gateway in Aussaguel, France were renewed for an additional 10-year term.

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Specifically, the FCC modified our space station authorization and our blanket mobile earth station license to permit a terrestrial network using 11.5 MHz of our licensed mobile-satellite service spectrum.

We will need to comply with certain conditions in order to provide terrestrial broadband service over this spectrum.

In December 2018, we successfully completed the Third Generation Partnership Project (“3GPP”) standardization process for the 11.5 MHz of spectrum terrestrially authorized by the FCC.

In December 2018, we successfully completed the Third Generation Partnership Project (“3GPP”) standardization process for the 11.5 MHz of our licensed MSS spectrum terrestrially authorized by the FCC.

The 3GPP designated the band as Band 53.

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Additional follow-on 3GPP specifications and approvals are expected in the future.

During 2019, we executed a spectrum managers lease with Nokia in order to permit Nokia to utilize Band 53 within its equipment domestically and have such equipment type-certified for sale and deployment.

In February 2021, Qualcomm Technologies announced its new Snapdragon X65 modem-RF System, which includes support for Band n53.

By having global 5G band support for n53 in Qualcomm Technologies’ 5G solutions, our potential device ecosystem expands significantly to include the most popular smartphones, laptops, tablets, automated equipment and other IoT modules.

We believe our MSS spectrum position provides potential for harmonized terrestrial authority across many international

regulatory domains and have been seeking approvals in various international jurisdictions.

To date, we have received terrestrial authorizations in various countries.

including Brazil, Canada and South Africa, among others.

We believe our MSS spectrum position provides potential for harmonized terrestrial authority across many international regulatory domains and have been seeking approvals in various international jurisdictions.

To date, we have received additional terrestrial authorizations in various countries including Brazil, Canada and South Africa, among others.

We expect this global effort to continue for the foreseeable future while we seek additional terrestrial approvals to internationally harmonize our S-band spectrum across the entire 16.5 MHz authority for terrestrial mobile broadband services.

We expect our terrestrial authority will allow future partners to develop high-density dedicated networks using the TD-LTE protocol for private LTE networks as well as the densification of cellular networks.

We expect our terrestrial authority will allow future partners to develop high-density dedicated networks using the TD-LTE and 5G protocols for private networks as well as the densification of cellular networks.

We believe that our offering has competitive advantages over other conventional commercial spectrum allocations.

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We believe that our licensed 2.4 GHz band holds physical, regulatory and ecosystem qualities that distinguishes it from other current and anticipated allocations, and that it is well positioned to balance favorable range, capacity and attenuation characteristics.

National Regulation of Service Providers

In order to operate gateways, applicable laws and regulations require the IGOs and our affiliates in each country to obtain a license or licenses from that country's telecommunications regulatory authority.

In addition, the gateway operator must enter into appropriate interconnection and financial settlement agreements with local and interexchange telecommunications providers.

All gateways operated by us or the IGOs are licensed by the appropriate regulatory authority.

Our subscriber equipment generally must be type certified in countries in which it is sold or leased.

The manufacturers of the equipment and our affiliates or IGOs are jointly responsible for securing type certification.

We have received type certification in multiple countries for each of our products.

We compete in the MSS sector of the global communications industry.

MSS operators provide voice and data services using a network of one or more satellites and associated ground facilities.

Mobile satellite services are usually complementary to, and interconnected with, other forms of terrestrial communications services and infrastructure and are intended to respond to users' desires for connectivity at all times and locations.

Mobile satellite services are usually complementary to, and interconnected with, other forms of terrestrial communications services and infrastructure and are intended to allow for connectivity at all times and locations.

Customers typically use satellite voice and data communications in situations where existing terrestrial wireline and wireless communications networks are impaired or do not exist.

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Within the major satellite sectors, fixed and MSS operators differ significantly from each other.

bandwidth signals to and from the satellite network for video and high speed data customers and international telephone markets.

Fixed satellite services providers, such as Intelsat Ltd., Eutelsat Communications and SES S.A., and aperture terminal companies, such as Hughes and Gilat Satellite Networks, are characterized by large, often stationary or "fixed," ground terminals that send and receive high-bandwidth signals to and from the satellite network for video and high speed data customers and international telephone markets.

On the other hand, MSS providers, such as Globalstar, ORBCOMM, Inmarsat PLC (“Inmarsat”) and Iridium Communications Inc.

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In addition, LEO systems are less prone to signal blockage and, consequently, we believe provide a better overall quality of service.

We are also a provider of licensed wireless spectrum for use in terrestrial networks.

As more and more devices are connected wirelessly and as their applications increase in bandwidth intensity, more terrestrial spectrum is required.

In the United States, there are a number of other current licensed spectrum providers, including Anterix, Nextwave, Terrastar, Ligado and as well as various other licensed spectrum holders.

We also provide an alternative to unlicensed spectrum used with WiFi or lightly licensed spectrum like CBRS.

Each spectrum band is unique due to its propagation or ecosystem development;

accordingly some bands suit needs that others may not.

Our spectrum band offers partners an international resource that has a robust and growing ecosystem.

The global communications industry is highly competitive.

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In addition to cost, there is a significant amount of lead-time associated with obtaining the required licenses, designing and building the satellite constellation and synchronizing the network technology.

For terrestrial spectrum opportunities, our primary competition is unlicensed spectrum and, to a lesser extent, lightly licensed CBRS.

Anterix, a licensed spectrum holder, is also a successful competitor for use cases that require low data over longer distances.

We may be able to address certain of these use cases with spectrum provided by our satellite network.

Governmental Regulations

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We continue to maintain all of the patents in the United States, Canada and Europe that we believe are important to our business.

Our intellectual property is pledged as security for our obligations under our senior secured credit facility agreement (the “First Lien Facility Agreement”) and second lien credit facility agreement (the "Second Lien Facility Agreement").

Our intellectual property is pledged as security for our obligations under our $199.0 million facility agreement we entered into in 2019 (the "2019 Facility Agreement").

Human Capital

As of December 31, 2020, we had 346 employees in twelve countries around the world;

As of December 31, 2021, we had 329 employees in fourteen countries around the world;

21 of our employees were located in Brazil and subject to collective bargaining agreements.

We consider our relationship with our employees to be good.

We are an equal opportunity employer and comply with labor and employment laws in all of the countries in which we operate.

Our compensation and benefit packages are designed to attract and retain employees and were developed using market research.

We attract employees through various platforms, such as online job portals, in-person job fairs, local universities and employee referrals.

We attract employees through various platforms, such as online job portals, recruiters, in-person job fairs, local universities and employee referrals.

Salaries are competitive and based on job position, physical location, experience and skills.

In addition to base salary, certain employees participate in longer-term incentive programs, which includes awards of stock-based compensation.

Our benefits packages include, but are not limited to, health insurance, a retirement plan, an employee stock purchase plan, flexible spending accounts, life and accidental injury insurance, long- and short-term disability, and paid time off for holidays, vacation, sick time and parental leave.

In addition to base salary, certain employees participate in longer-term incentive programs, which include awards of stock-based compensation.

We also encourage training and development through Globalstar University, which is an online platform that hosts a variety of training programs ranging from leadership and management programs to technical, on the job training.

Employee engagement is also important for us, and includes an interactive wellness program, corporate communications and employee surveys.

Our commitment to diversity and inclusion is part of our worldwide culture, which our employees confirmed in our most recent employee survey with "Diversity and Inclusion" being one of the highest rated culture categories.

Our commitment to diversity and inclusion is part of our worldwide culture, which our employees confirmed in our most recent employee survey with "Diversity and Inclusion" continues as one of the highest rated culture categories.

In response to COVID-19 mitigation measures, we remain focused on the health and safety of our employees.

We continue to encourage remote working arrangements and accommodate flexible work schedules, as needed.

Usage on the network and, to some extent, sales are subject to seasonal and situational changes.

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Most notably, emergencies, natural disasters and other sizable projects where satellite-based communications devices are the only solution may generate an increase in revenue.

In the consumer area, SPOT devices sales are influenced by outdoor and leisure activity opportunities, as well as our promotional efforts.

In the consumer area, SPOT devices sales are influenced by outdoor and leisure activity opportunities, as well as our holiday promotions.

Services and Equipment

8 unchanged sentences

Compared sentence by sentence after normalising whitespace, quotation marks, case and digits, so re-formatting and restated figures do not read as changed language. Wording changes appear as one removal and one addition. The current filing and the prior one are authoritative.

What changed 10-K

Item 1. Business