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times are much quicker. On the other hand, VSAT service fees are often dra- matically less expensive than the fees most vessels now accrue on L-band sys- tems. So when VSAT hardware costs are amortized and combined with monthly service fees, the result can be much lower costs than L-band systems. Collett, Inmarsat The adoption of technology. An added dimension has been the financial and industry crisis of the last couple of years. A large part of the industry still does not have the budget for “always on” internet. In this market- place, you have to closely tailor your products to the user’s needs. For exam- ple, over the years, voice was the com- munication mode of choice for crew “calling,” but today, with the new gener- ation, the demand is for internet and email access. How is your company investing today to better serve the maritime market? Dodez, KVH KVH is investing to complete the rollout of the most power- ful, seamless global maritime VSAT communications network available. To- gether, KVH and ViaSat are currently providing two-way mobile broadcast services from eight secure teleports around the globe utilizing eight full transponders on seven of the world's most powerful communications satellites. Each of our satellite hubs hosts over $1 million worth of ViaSat ArcLight tech- nology to deliver spread spectrum serv- ices to our mini-VSAT Broadband subscribers, creating a seamless global network that covers virtually all of the world’s shipping lanes. Collett, Inmarsat FB150 was launched last June (2009), and now, just a year later, we are close to 1,500 users. This presents a significant opportunity for smaller vessels to have a less expensive broadband option. The FB150 was also notable as it went from concept to launch in less than one year, the fastest that we have ever launched a product. Mercer, Iridium First and foremost, we are “re-seeding” the satellite constella- tion. We have always had the issue that we have a finite life on our constellation. Today we have 66 satellites (and seven spares) providing global, canopy cover- age. The total cost of Iridium NEXT, in- cluding all costs associated with development, manufacture and launch of the constellation, is anticipated to be ap- proximately $2.9b. Fisher, Mackay Vessel management tools to control communication costs, and trouble shoot onboard satellite equipment problems. The vessels can no longer af- ford to wait to get into port to fix a com- munication problem. The tools we provide a vessel to manage cost and on board problems make our customers more efficient users of all the new tech- nology. We are investing in trained IT and customer support personnel to help teach customers to be more self reliant with their equipment and applications. Bergan, iDirect iDirect has engineered several features that integrate with its VSAT platform to address mobility chal- lenges for the maritime industry such as bandwidth segmentation, traversing satel- lite beams, smaller antenna sizes and more effective network management. To help make VSAT faster and more reliable to the broader commercial market, iDi- rect also has invested R&D into improv- ing spread spectrum technology to enable VSAT to run over smaller antennas, such as those on mega yachts. We’ve incorpo- rated Adaptive Coding and Modulation (ACM) into our technology platform, which preserves signal quality from rain fade and other weather-related issues. 28 Maritime Reporter & Engineering News FEATURE SATCOM ROUNDTABLE STRATOS Michiel Meijer An increasing number of ship man- agers are providing crewmembers with free email services and pre- paid voice services. KVH Jim Dodez This year we’re also introducing new ways for people onboard our mini-VSAT Broadband equipped vessels to access the system through crew calling and internet café cards, and even using their own cell phones.
