KVH and ViaSat Launch Broadband Internet Services in the Pacific Ocean Region
Posted by
world Jr at Tuesday, January 27, 2009
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Satellite Internet Service
By Shamila Janakiraman
TMCnet Contributing Editor
KVH Industries has launched a mini-VSAT Broadband satellite communications service in the Pacific Ocean. The satellite will enable broadband Internet and telephone services between vessels and jets crossing the Pacific Ocean, according to the company.
The new coverage area also includes Alaska, the west coasts of Canada and the United States, Hawaii and extends into Asia. The launch follows efforts by KVH and ViaSat together to provide Ku-band broadband connections worldwide. Planes and ships can access uninterrupted Ku-band Internet and voice services from the Asian coast towards the east covering North America and the Caribbean. The coverage area further extends across the North Atlantic and up to the Mediterranean region.
“We have now successfully rolled out a single, unified broadband service across roughly two-thirds of the world’s major shipping and aeronautical lanes, enabling us to offer commercial, leisure, and government customers a unique mobile communications hardware and service solution,” said Martin Kits van Heyningen, KVH’s chief executive officer.
“Our goal, as we enter 2009, is to complete our global mini-VSAT Broadband network and support the growing demand for faster, more affordable data and voice connections for people on the move,” said Kits.
The mini-VSAT Broadband service and the KVH TracPhone V7 antenna together constitute the first end-to-end 24-inch VSAT hardware, service, and support package available for maritime communications. It enables Voice over IP (VoIP) phone service and Internet access as fast as 512 Kbps (upload) and 2 Mbps (download) provided at nominal monthly rates.
The compact TracPhone V7 is very light and smaller in volume compared to traditional 1-meter VSAT antennas. It facilitates high speed VSAT communications and the equipment is easy to install. The TracPhone V7 is most suitable for smaller vessels especially commercial fishing boats, leisure yachts, government vessels, and for commercial operations.
ViaSat (News - Alert) supplies innovative satellite and digital communication products for providing fast and secure communications any where. It’s networking products and managed network services are suitable for enterprise IP applications, military communications and encryption technologies used by the government. ViaSat is a technology partner for gateway and customer premises equipment required by consumer and mobile satellite broadband services.
Don Buchman, ViaSat’s director for mobile broadband emphasized that the success and growth of the Ku-band satellite broadband service, depended wholly on the company’s success in ArcLight technology. This has created new demand for services over the Pacific and into Asia. He also said that the mobile network service will be provided to existing customers as well as to new customers soon.
KVH provides in-motion satellite TV and communications systems and has designed, manufactured and sold several thousand mobile satellite antennas to be used in ships, vehicles and aircraft.
Shamila Janakiraman is a contributing editor for TMCnet. To read more of Shamila’s articles, please visit her columnist page.
Edited by Tim Gray
source: satellite.tmcnet.com
