A BROADBAND satellite firm, which specialises in war zones and disaster stricken areas, has boosted its global presence following an acquisition arranged in the North-East.

The company law team at regional firm BHP Law, led by David Wilson, helped Broadband Satellite Services significantly increase its size and reach on the acquisition of the AND Group, of North Shields, and 18 members of the Satcom Global group of companies.

The new $100m a year venture now has a total of 60,000 subscribers who otherwise would not be able to have telephone and internet connection.
Supporting 155 staff worldwide, Broadband Satellite Services now has offices in Brazil, Greece, Singapore, Gibraltar, South Africa, USA, Australia, Hong Kong, Thailand, Japan and the United Arab Emirates.

Newcastle-born chief executive Ian Robinson, who runs the business with chief finance officer Robert Howes, said: “The acquisition has taken about 16 months to complete but now makes us a major player providing communications services to areas where there are no masts or cables.”

He said the company specialised in communications where traditional landlines and mobiles posed problems, for example in war zones, disaster-hit areas, and at sea.

“I have used BHP Law before and they are very easy to work with,” added Mr Robinson. “We are delighted we can now move forward with something we feel passionate about.”

Mr Wilson said: “This was a fascinating transaction involving the UK and a number or overseas jurisdictions, requiring nearly two years to effect the acquisitions and then complete the refinancing of the business. We are delighted to have been able to assist BSS in achieving this.”
Mr Robinson said the market was growing for the business with a host of opportunities arising in countries such as Russia and India.

“It is a fascinating area and we have 30 specialists developing software to maximise lower bandwidth offered by satellite,” he said.

“People in these areas want to do exactly what the rest of the world is able to do with cable and mobile. They want to talk to each and surf the net and we are providing the interface they need to do just that.

“This acquisition has allowed for a great deal of cross-fertilisation of expertise between the companies which allows us to exploit new markets and grow organically with our current client base.”