The private sector has little interest in low-density areas such as Samar, and any national tech agendas have been overshadowed by the corruption scandal that recently led to President Joseph Estrada's ouster. Intelsat was the only U.S. satellite link to the rest of the world. At first a show of political and technological power by the Kennedy administration, Intelsat soon became a critical piece of the broadcasting infrastructure. Intelsat beamed the live pictures from Neil Armstrong's 1969 moonwalk and, starting in 1972, from the Olympics. On July 18, Intelsat will once again reinvent itself as a private company with plans to sell stock to the public within a year.
Analysts believe the company's history and scope position it well for the move.