Net Income (Loss) Attributable to ORBCOMM Inc. Common Stockholders - Summary of Basic and Diluted Calculations of EPS (Detail) - USD ($) $ / shares in Units, shares in Thousands, $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2016	Sep. 30, 2015	Sep. 30, 2016	Sep. 30, 2015
Earnings Per Share [Abstract]
Net (loss) income attributable to ORBCOMM Inc. common stockholders	$ (14,048)	$ 1,582	$ (20,313)	$ (13,517)
Weighted average number of common shares outstanding:
Basic number of common shares outstanding	70,997	70,460	70,866	70,376
Dilutive effect of unvested SARs and RSUs and shares of Series A convertible preferred stock		1,458
Diluted number of common shares outstanding	70,997	71,918	70,866	70,376
Earnings per share:
Basic	$ (0.20)	$ 0.02	$ (0.29)	$ (0.19)
Diluted	$ (0.20)	$ 0.02	$ (0.29)	$ (0.19)