ViaSat Inc. (Nasdaq:VSAT) recently passed 100,000 flight hours for its
ArcLight® airborne broadband system that
delivers cable-like broadband service to business aircraft. The Ku-band
satellite service, the only one licensed by the FCC, offers faster
speeds at a lower cost than either cellular or other satellite
mobile broadband alternatives, as well as better service in
congested airspace. Aircraft are free to roam the entire coverage area,
which today includes North America, the North Atlantic, and Europe.
ViaSat and communications service provider ARINC initiated broadband
in-flight service in early 2005. Since then the mobile network has grown
to serve maritime vessels and ground vehicles as well as aircraft. Most
of the 100,000 hours have been logged by larger business jets using ARINC
SKYLinkSM
service, such as the Gulfstream G550.
The mobile broadband network uses patented ViaSat ArcLight technology,
which enables use of very small (12-inch), light-weight antennas. The
service offers data download speeds of up to 10 Mbps to the aircraft and
up to 512 kbps uploads. Customers can send and receive broadband data,
connect to a virtual private network, and access video programming using
portable devices on the ground, during taxi, and in-flight.
"This milestone validates our claim that our
ArcLight technology, using Ku-band satellites, has significant
advantages over other mobile broadband systems,”
said Don Buchman, director of ViaSat Mobile Broadband Systems. "Once
our network expansion is complete, aircraft, ships, and land vehicles
will be able to move from one region to another, around the globe,
without service interruption.”
Recently ViaSat announced plans to expand its ArcLight network to
provide worldwide coverage by the end of 2009, working with maritime
service provider KVH Industries. Mobile
broadband coverage of the North Pacific is planned for the end of
the year with coverage of Japan and Southeast Asia to follow soon.
About ViaSat
ViaSat produces innovative satellite and other digital communication
products that enable fast, secure, and efficient communications to any
location. The company provides networking products and managed network
services for enterprise IP applications; is a key supplier of
network-centric military communications and encryption technologies to
the U.S. government; and is the primary technology partner for gateway
and customer premises equipment for consumer and mobile satellite
broadband services. The company has five subsidiaries: US Monolithics,
Efficient Channel Coding, Enerdyne Technologies, Intelligent Compression
Technologies (ICT), and JAST. These companies design and produce
complementary products such as monolithic microwave integrated circuits,
DVB-S2 satellite communication components, video data link systems, data
acceleration and compression products, and mobile satellite antenna
systems. ViaSat has locations in Carlsbad, CA, and Duluth, GA, along
with its Comsat Laboratories division in Germantown, MD. Additional
field offices are located in Boston, MA, Baltimore, MD, Washington DC,
Australia, China, India, Italy, and Spain.
Forward-Looking Statements
Portions of this release, particularly statements about network
expansion, global or worldwide coverage, the role of ViaSat and KVH in
cooperating and establishing networks, the sale of ViaSat equipment and
services, and the performance and deliveries of ViaSat products and
technology contain forward-looking statements regarding future events
and are subject to risks and uncertainties. ViaSat wishes to caution you
that there are some factors that could cause actual results to differ
materially, including but not limited to: contractual problems, product
defects, manufacturing issues or delays, regulatory issues, technologies
not being developed according to anticipated schedules, or that do not
perform according to expectations; and increased competition and other
factors affecting the telecommunications industry generally. In
addition, please refer to the risk factors contained in ViaSat’s
SEC filings available at www.sec.gov,
including without limitation, ViaSat’s annual
reports on Form 10-K and ViaSat’s quarterly
reports on Form 10-Q. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance
on any forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date on
which they are made. ViaSat undertakes no obligation to update or revise
any forward-looking statements for any reason.
SKYLink is a service mark of ARINC.
Comsat Labs and Comsat Laboratories are tradenames of ViaSat, Inc.
Neither Comsat Labs nor Comsat Laboratories is affiliated with COMSAT
Corporation. "Comsat”
is a registered trademark of COMSAT Corporation. All additional products
are trademarks of their respective owners.