Why one satellite company needs 3 spacecraft and another needs 66. $RKLB, $IRDM and $VSAT are the examples. A geostationary satellite orbits at the same speed the Earth turns, so from the ground it never moves and one dish points at it once. To do that it has to sit far enough out for one orbit to take a day, and every signal makes that long trip up and back. A low Earth orbit satellite flies close and fast, crossing the sky in minutes. That cuts the delay and lets a handheld talk to it, but none of them stays overhead, so you need a fleet and a steady supply of replacements as the low ones wear out. $IRDM 's numbers: it did $871.7M of revenue in 2025 with operational EBITDA of $495M, a 57% margin, and $RKLB is paying $54 a share for it, half in cash, with closing expected mid-2027. @Peter_J_Beck , Founder and CEO of Rocket Lab: "By marrying Iridium's deep heritage, trusted infrastructure, and highly sought-after spectrum with Rocket Lab's extensive and proven launch and manufacturing capabilities, we have the capability to unlock entirely new markets." A launch company buying a LEO operator is buying its own recurring customer. A GEO operator never needs it that often. Find the altitude first. It tells you the delay, the antenna, the fleet size and how often the launch bill comes due. Which orbit does the satellite stock you follow fly in? It's not a sprint, it's a marathon.