Leading maritime satellite communications provider augments its mini-VSAT Broadband network as global customers increase their reliance on broadband connectivity.
MIDDLETOWN, RI – January 15, 2014 – KVH Industries, Inc., (Nasdaq: KVHI) is doubling the capacity for two of the three global C-band beams of its mini-VSAT Broadband network, further enhancing the world’s most extensive C/Ku-band maritime VSAT network. The increased C-band capacity, which will take effect next month, enhances the mini-VSAT Broadband network’s multimegabit service covering all major shipping routes, offshore oil fields, and commercial fishing grounds and serving marine operations and vessels around the globe. KVH plans to continue to grow the C-band capacity as needed to meet demand from its growing customer base and maritime operations applications that are increasingly reliant on broadband connectivity.
KVH first introduced C-band overlay coverage to its existing Ku-band network less than two years ago, and has seen installations of its unique dual-mode TracPhone® V11-IP satellite communications system steadily increase. This onboard terminal uses a single, 1-meter diameter stabilized antenna with dual-band transmit and receive capability to seamlessly switch between the mini-VSAT Broadband network’s global C- and Ku-band satellite coverage, providing reliable onboard network management and crucial continuity for onboard systems that rely on satellite Internet service.
“Vessels using the TracPhone V11-IP typically need C-band coverage only a small percentage of the time they are at sea, because of the extensive Ku-band capacity of the mini-VSAT Broadband network, which itself has more than doubled worldwide in the past year,” explains Marc Edwards, KVH’s network operations director. “This unique network architecture allows us to provide the power and speed of a modern maritime VSAT service with the global coverage typical of global L-band services like Inmarsat FleetBroadband.”
