Commercial communications satellites, weather satellites and other spacecraft are often put into a high equatorial orbit  (36000 km high) called the geostationary orbit where the satellite will revolve at the same angular velocity as the earth turns, thus keeping it always above a given spot on the equator. Here is an explanation of  geostationary and also of geosynchronous orbits and of how an orbit can be made circular : How to get a satellite to geostationary orbit – The Planetary Society

Putting a spacecraft into geostationary orbit typically starts by a rocket putting it into a highly elliptical orbit with the apogee at 36,000 km. This is called the geostationary transfer orbit. The animation below illustrates how the perigee of a highly elliptical orbit is raised by firing the spacecraft’s own engine at the apogee of the orbit:

http://youtu.be/COCAIPtVA2M