Launch of Intelsat EpicNG Platform to
Further Enhance New High Performance Solutions for Maritime Customers
LUXEMBOURG & WASHINGTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Mar. 16, 2015--
Airbus Defence and Space and Intelsat S.A. (NYSE: I) announced today
that the companies’ strategic agreement concluded in 2014 has yielded
value for end-users and is setting the course for even more maritime
customer advantages as part of a seamless transition to Intelsat EpicNG
high throughput satellites.
One year ago, Airbus Defence and Space and Intelsat announced a
strategic agreement to introduce improved maritime VSAT (Very Small
Aperture Terminal) offerings to the marketplace. The agreement was to
enable Airbus Defence and Space to bridge its existing maritime VSAT
services to Intelsat’s high throughput satellite (HTS) Intelsat EpicNG
platform, the first of which, Intelsat 29e, is scheduled to launch in
the first quarter of 2016.
Since that announcement, the companies have made strides toward
enhancing existing VSAT services for Airbus Defence and Space’s maritime
customers while ensuring the combined offering is “EpicNG
ready.” The agreement secured Airbus Defence and Space’s access to
Intelsat’s global Ku-band satellite capacity and terrestrially managed
network, IntelsatOne®. Stimulating significant market demand,
the partnership resulted in connecting more than 600 vessels with VSAT
communications in 2014 alone. This included shipping companies such as
Stolt, CMA CGM, Scorpio, and DOF, and represented a doubling of Airbus
Defence and Space’s maritime VSAT sales over the previous year.
“Our partnership with Intelsat has given us further flexibility to
develop the connectivity services the maritime market requires today,
but also for the future with the Intelsat EpicNG HTS
satellites coming soon,” said Evert Dudok, Head of Communications,
Intelligence and Security (CIS) Business Line at Airbus Defence and
Space. “Our mission is to stay close to the customers and integrate the
services they need into a single solution. This approach has resulted in
significant sales growth since our agreement with Intelsat last year,
and given the progress and offering delivered to date, we are expecting
even more growth in the maritime VSAT segment.”
Kurt Riegelman, Senior Vice President, Global Sales, Intelsat, said:
“Airbus Defense and Space have been a great partner; their recognition
of the innovative value that Intelsat EpicNG will bring to
their customers has set apart their offering to this segment. As a
result, maritime customers are deriving benefits today from a fully
integrated, global satellite solution that will progressively and
seamlessly incorporate new technology as it becomes available. We look
forward to continuing to work with Airbus Defence and Space to deliver
higher performing, more efficient and flexible satellite solutions to a
wide range of maritime customers.”
“As we move towards a smarter approach to operations our requirement for
reliable connectivity grows. We need bandwidth that can be relied upon
to deliver IP connectivity for a wide range of applications from engine
monitoring to admin functions, which help us to operate safer and more
efficiently. The service offered by Airbus, and provided on Intelsat
satellites, has delivered the reliability and availability we need to
embrace for smart operations at sea,” commented Tor Skeie, CEO Marin IT
AS (DOF).
The planned transition to Intelsat EpicNG will enable
additional capacity in key maritime routes. The flexible and backward
compatible architecture of Intelsat EpicNG makes it easy for
Airbus Defence and Space’s existing customers to leverage the digital
payload for greater flexibility, network adaptability and more efficient
use of spectrum with throughput up to 10 times that of traditional
satellites.
About Intelsat
Intelsat S.A. (NYSE: I) is the world’s leading provider of satellite
services, delivering high performance connectivity solutions for media,
fixed and mobile broadband infrastructure, enterprise and government and
military applications. Intelsat’s satellite, teleport and fiber
infrastructure is unmatched in the industry, setting the standard for
transmissions of video and broadband services. From the globalization of
content and the proliferation of HD, to the expansion of cellular
networks and mobile broadband access, with Intelsat, envision your
future network, connect using our leading satellite technology and
transform your opportunities. Envision…Connect…Transform…with Intelsat.
For more information, visit www.intelsat.com.
About Airbus Defence and Space
Airbus Defence and Space is a division of Airbus Group formed by
combining the business activities of Cassidian, Astrium and Airbus
Military. The new division is Europe’s number one defence and space
enterprise, the second largest space business worldwide and among the
top ten global defence enterprises. It employs some 38,000 employees
generating revenues of approximately €13 billion per year.
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Source: Intelsat
Intelsat
Michele Loguidice
Director, Investor Relations
& Corporate Communications
703-559-7372
Michele.loguidice@intelsat.com
or
Airbus
Defence and Space
Knut Natvig
+47 48 030 911
