ViaSat Acquires ARINC SKYLink Business Jet High-Speed Internet Service and Adds Customers to Global Yonder Service Network
CARLSBAD, Calif., Oct 19, 2010 /PRNewswire via COMTEX News Network/ -- ViaSat Inc. (Nasdaq: VSAT) has acquired the SKYLink airborne broadband service from ARINC Inc. and added those business jet customers to the ViaSat Yonder(R) high-speed Internet access network. The combination is intended to provide both Yonder and SKYLink customers with an enhanced service experience. The acquisition adds about 80 private business jets to the Yonder network and increases the satellite capacity of the network. With the help of its preferred service partner, Satcom Direct, ViaSat has been gradually transitioning the new customers to the Yonder network over the past few months.
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Yonder service will provide former SKYLink customers with the same high quality service, but with an expanded coverage area. The Yonder high-speed inflight Internet service now encircles the globe, with continuous coverage of virtually all major city pairs worldwide.
“We want to ensure that the transition between the SKYLink and Yonder services is seamless. ARINC has continued to operate a portion of the network under the Yonder brand, while all details of the transition are carried out,” said Steve Chacko, ViaSat director for Global Service.
Yonder service offers cable modem-like performance with individual passengers experiencing data download speeds of 1 to 2 Mbps and upload speeds of 128 to 1024 kbps. Business jet customers get an “office in the sky” experience, with the ability to send and receive high-speed data, connect to a virtual private network, use VoIP equipment for voice calls, and access the Internet using portable devices via an in-cabin Wi-Fi network.
The mobile Ku-band satellite network uses ViaSat technology to provide IP service on a near global basis with seamless switching between satellites. As part of the acquisition, ViaSat also gains access to FAA Supplemental Type Certificates (STCs) held by ARINC for installation of ViaSat Yonder-compatible VMT-1500 Ku-band equipment on Boeing Business Jets, Cessna Citation X, and Challenger 604 aircraft.
About ViaSat (www.viasat.com)
ViaSat produces innovative satellite and other digital communication products that enable fast, secure, and efficient communications to virtually 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 and products to the U.S. government; is the primary technology partner for gateway and customer-premises equipment for consumer and mobile satellite broadband services; and owns WildBlue, the premier Ka-band satellite broadband service provider. ViaSat also offers design capabilities and a number of complementary products including monolithic microwave integrated circuits and modules, DVB-S2 satellite communication components, video data link systems, data acceleration and compression, and mobile satellite antenna systems. Based in Carlsbad, California, ViaSat includes a number of locations worldwide for customer service, network operations, and technology development.
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, among others, statements that refer to SKYLink customers transitioning to the Yonder network. ViaSat wishes to caution you that there are some factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed in any forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause actual results to differ include: 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 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.
SOURCE ViaSat Inc.
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