Honywell, Thales integrating Global Xpress systems for in-flight Internet

Honeywell and Thales Alenia Space issued a joint announcement on September 21 regarding their newly-formed partnership. Honeywell will integrate the avionics and satellite antenna systems of its Inmarsat Global Xpress service with Thales’ cabin network solutions to create a Ka-band in-flight connectivity service.

Honeywell and Thales will leverage the Ka-band broadband capacity of Global Express to offer in-flight connectivity bandwidth of up to four times greater than the current standard. The Inmarsat satellite Internet service will allow for media-rich applications such as virtual office capability, video conferencing, real-time satellite TV channel viewing, and social media connectivity. It will also reportedly be more cost-effective than competitors' in-flight Internet services.

The three Global Xpress Ka-band satellites are currently being built at aerospace company Boeing's facilities in El Segundo, California. The first satellite has been scheduled for a 2013 launch.

Communications provider JRC partners with Inmarsat for Global Xpress launch

In a recent announcement, Inmarsat reported that it was renewing and expanding its strategic maritime partnership with Japanese-based communications provider JRC in preparation for the 2014 launch of Inmarsat's Global Xpress satellite broadband platform.

According to Frank Coles, President, Inmarsat Maritime, Inmarsat has always closely integrated its products with the best hardware and antenna manufacturers for the best connectivity solutions.

“Our fourth generation satellite service, the FleetBroadband platform,” Mr. Coles cited as an example, “has rested heavily on reliable providers like JRC. We are now delighted to extend our partnership with JRC and together develop connectivity solutions for the Global Xpress programme, which will become operational during 2014."

He added that Inmarsat continues to develop intuitive products for the shipping market by integrating its next-generation high throughput services (HTS) with hardware solutions that have proven their reliability and quality.

As a trusted Inmarsat partner since 2005, JRC provides both products and support services for Inmarsat's FleetBroadband maritime communications platform. The partnership will be extended to encompass the new Global Xpress satellite broadband program as well.

JRC and Inmarsat will develop cost-efficient, compact, and easy-to-install solutions for the shipping industry. High-speed connectivity to be provided by Inmarsat's future fleet of Ka-band satellites.

SES Broadband Service set to start late this year

November 2012 will witness the launch of SES Broadband Service (SBBS,) a Ka-band satellite broadband service that will offer up to 20Mbit/s downloads and up to 2Mbps upload.

Right now, the ASTRA 2F platform is waiting for September 21, 2012. Once successfully launched, the SES satellite will be parked at the orbital position 28.2 degrees East, the first of four Ka-band satellites that will support SES Broadband'sInternet-by-satellite services.

A cooperation agreement between SES, Gilat Satellite Technologies, and Newtec created both SBBS' hub infrastructure and the means to deliver the end-user terminals to SES' customers.

“With ASTRA 2F and the subsequent launches of ASTRA 2E, ASTRA 5B and ASTRA 2G in 2013 and 2014, we will be able to further expand our satellite broadband service in Europe with the additional Ka-band capacity on our fleet,” said Patrick Biewer, Managing Director of SBBS.

SES’ long-term partners NordNet, Vivéole, and WIBOX will distribute the new satellite Internet service to end-consumers in France. Representatives from those three service providers were excited for the Ka-band satellite broadband service.

“The new service will further increase the attractiveness of satellite broadband,” said Francis Piet, CEO of NordNet, who added that satellite Internet is now 500% faster while costing only half the price it did in 2008.

“Vivéole has been committed to bridging the digital divide since 2005,” Alexandre Séménadisse, CEO of Vivéole, said. “As a long-standing partner of SES, we will soon be able to offer even better solutions to a larger customer base.”

“The fact that satellite technology has constantly developed allows us to meet the growing demand for broadband services in the regions,” agreed Thomas Gassiloud, President of WIBOX. “We can now offer services close to the speed of ADSL connections and traffic volumes offering unprecedented freedom of choice for our customers.”