New Office in Mexico City Reinforces Viasat’s Commitment to this Vibrant Community, and to Bringing Fast, Reliable Satellite-Enabled Internet Services to all of Mexico
MEXICO CITY, April 8, 2019 — Viasat Inc. (NASDAQ: VSAT), a global communications company, announced today the opening of its Mexican headquarters. The new office—located in Montes Urales in the northwest part of Mexico City—will enable Viasat to be centrally-located as it looks to bring new satellite-enabled connectivity services to the country.
“We’ve had an incredible opportunity to bring digital inclusion to many people living in rural, suburban and urban areas of Mexico; offer fast, reliable satellite internet service to more businesses and schools across the country; and even connect passengers and crew flying on commercial airplanes,” said Rick Baldridge, president and chief operating officer, Viasat. “Opening our office in Mexico City—a major city of international commerce—is a strategic move for Viasat. It allows us to prepare for future growth, by working with local businesses and governments on how best to leverage advances in satellite connectivity to serve the people of Mexico.”
In less than one-year since entering the Mexican market, Viasat has made an impact on how the people of Mexico can connect to high-speed, high-quality internet—anywhere:
- In April 2018, Viasat officially introduced its Community Wi-Fi service, an innovative approach to bringing affordable Wi-Fi directly to consumer’s devices, where internet service was previously unavailable or ineffective. This allows those previously left behind in the digital divide to now enjoy the benefits that connectivity provides. Through an agreement with Grupo Prosperist, a Mexican telecommunications and technology service provider, the companies have successfully deployed Community Wi-Fi, marketed locally in Mexico under the Conectaless brand, which is now in reach to over one million people.
- In September 2018: Viasat announced Aeromexico selected Viasat’s in-flight connectivity service to provide optimized internet experiences to passengers and crew.
- In December 2018: Viasat made two announcements: it announced a relationship with Ubix, a trusted wholesale satellite internet and telecommunications company to bring high-speed satellite internet to enterprises, businesses and federal programs across Mexico. The Company also unveiled Urban Wi-Fi, which provides city residents across Mexico a satellite internet service with speeds, quality and pricing that are highly-competitive to other terrestrial internet offerings. A highly-resilient connectivity system, Urban Wi-Fi can also be a supplement to existing cellular networks—in times of natural disaster or national security relief.
- In February 2019: Viasat announced a collaboration with Facebook to accelerate the deployment of Community Wi-Fi to communities in Mexico that lack reliable internet or have no connectivity at all.
Baldridge continued, “Mexico is an important market for us. Opening our new office is a necessary step to build our presence in country and support current initiatives as well as potential future services such as the availability of education and residential internet services.”
To provide internet service to Mexico, Viasat leverages the world’s most advanced high-capacity satellite, ViaSat-2. The Company is currently building a global constellation of three next-generation ultra-high-capacity satellites, known as the ViaSat-3 class of satellites, to bring affordable high-speed, high-quality internet connectivity to the hardest to reach places on earth.
About Viasat
Viasat is a global communications company that believes everyone and everything in the world can be connected. For more than 30 years, Viasat has helped shape how consumers, businesses, governments and militaries around the world communicate. Today, the Company is developing the ultimate global communications network to power high-quality, secure, affordable, fast connections to impact people’s lives anywhere they are—on the ground, in the air or at sea. To learn more about Viasat, visit: www.viasat.com, go to Viasat’s Corporate Blog, or follow the Company on social media at: Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Twitter or YouTube.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements that are subject to the safe harbors created under the Securities Act of 1933 and the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Forward-looking statements include statements that refer to the opportunities around opening the office in Mexico City; future growth, future services with respect to Community Wi-Fi, Urban Wi-Fi, aviation, education or residential; and the ViaSat-3 class of satellites. Readers are cautioned that actual results could differ materially from those expressed in any forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause actual results to differ include: the ability to realize the anticipated benefits of the ViaSat-3 satellite platform, unexpected expenses or delays related to the satellite system, the ability to successfully implement Viasat’s business plan for broadband satellite services on Viasat’s anticipated timeline or at all, including with respect to the ViaSat-3 satellite platform; risks associated with the construction, launch and operation of ViaSat-3 and Viasat’s other satellites, including the effect of any anomaly, operational failure or degradation in satellite performance 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 connectivity market, generally. In addition, please refer to the risk factors contained in Viasat’s SEC filings available at www.sec.gov, including Viasat’s most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and 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.
