"Space commercialization" is a general term that distinguishes private activities from those of the government in enabling the use of space from either an Earth-based operation or from space itself. Private-sector use of space involves activities that are expected to return a profit to investors, such as building, launching, and operating communications satellites or taking pictures of Earth from space to monitor crops.

In contrast to the private sector, government activities are performed to carry out specific missions for the public good. Examples range from national defense activities to scientific missions studying the planets, and also include satellites that monitor Earth's environment.

Because space research, development, and exploration are very expensive and risky, governments have funded most activities. During the 1990s, private companies began to expand beyond the already profitable communications satellite services, and develop the use of the space environment for the introduction of new products. The...