Globalstar said revenue from its SPOT consumer products increased by 47% in 2010.


Revenues generated by Globalstar's SPOT Satellite GPS Messenger and related consumer products and services  were $23.7 million compared with $16.1 million for 2009.


Since the introduction of the SPOT Satellite GPS Messenger product in November 2007, Globalstar has received orders to ship approximately 280,000 SPOT retail devices to over 10,000 SPOT Satellite GPS Messenger points of distribution in North America, Europe, Latin America, Australia, and Southeast Asia.


Globalstar ended 2010 with a total of 439,253 mobile satellite voice and data subscribers due primarily to growth of SPOT consumer products.

Outdoor and paddlesports shops have been selling SPOT devices as an affordable alternative to personal locator beacons, satellite phones and cell-based GPS trackers. The devices allow adventurers to send their location, status, messages or calls for help from the most remote locations via satellite from virtually anywhere in North America, Europe or Australia. Some retailers have offered SPOT devices for free with purchase of a kayak. 


On Tuesday, GlobalStar announced that SPOT HUG, its new  satellite-based security device for boats, went on sale at 47 West Marine retail locations across the United States and on the retail website. SPOT HUG monitors the boat’s position and detects any Unauthorized Movement automatically alerting a 24/7 Asset Monitoring Center with its GPS coordinates.  The Asset Monitoring center will notify the appropriate parties of the event including the registered boat owner and local authorities where available.  SPOT HUG also comes equipped with Sensor Alert capabilities and established SPOT messaging features for sending messages via satellite to others including an international rescue coordination center.


In January, Globalstar's SPOT LLC earned the Innovations Design and Engineering Award from the Consumer Electronics Association after unveiling the SPOT Connect satellite communicator for smartphones. SPOT Connect provides one-way messaging connectivity using the Globalstar satellite network for sending GPS location-based messages from cities or areas far beyond the range of cellular phone coverage. By simply downloading the SPOT Connect app, SPOT Connect wirelessly synchs via Bluetooth with smartphone operating systems like Android and Apple's iPhone. SPOT Satellite GPS Messenger features are then initiated using the SPOT Connect app on the smartphone device.