Our planet is literally girded with a belt of over one hundred satellites for radio, television and telephony. In thirty years, they have changed the way our economies work and have turned the world of television upside down.
Communications satellites can reach any point of the globe ignoring all frontiers.
Two are still in commercial service. Each ECS allowed coverage of the whole European continent for cable television, trunk telephony, specialised services and Eurovision transmissions. Two Marecs satellites were developed by ESA to provide communications with mobile stations, especially ships at sea. Launched in 1981 and 1984, they were later leased for operations to Inmarsat. One of them is still in service today.