PRESS RELEASE: KVH Industries, Inc., (Nasdaq: KVHI), a leader in mobile connectivity, announced that it recently shipped its 9,000thmini-VSAT Broadbandsm system. KVH’s TracPhone® V-series antenna systems are designed to provide satellite broadband connectivity to commercial vessels and leisure yachts around the world, by utilizing advanced satellite technology, including the latest high throughout satellites (HTS).
“Ever since we launched our mini-VSAT Broadband network more than 10 years ago, our antenna systems have been in demand by the maritime industry,” says Martin Kits van Heyningen, KVH’s chief executive officer. “Our solution is known for fast data speeds, affordable airtime, and an advanced, secure, and reliable network, which continues to be a winning combination as the maritime industry relies more and more on connectivity.”
KVH’s products and services have been recognized in the maritime industry for many years. TracPhone V-series systems have received eight product excellence awards from the National Marine Electronics Association (NMEA) in the past nine years. Also, in “Prospects for Maritime Satellite Communications, 6th Edition” (2018), industry analysts at Euroconsult reported that KVH is the market share leader in maritime VSAT by units, noting that KVH’s share of the maritime industry’s fielded VSAT terminals is nearly double that of its next closest competitor, as of the end of 2017.
KVH’s advanced TracPhone antenna systems include the TracPhone V3-HTS, a 37 cm diameter Ku-band ultra-compact maritime VSAT antenna, and theTracPhone V7-HTS, a 60 cm diameter Ku-band antenna. These HTS antenna systems are designed for KVH’s mini-VSAT Broadband HTS network, which utilizes Intelsat Flex Maritime service, providing multi-layered global coverage through Intelsat EpicNG HTS and select wide beams. KVH also manufactures the TracPhone V11-IP, a 1.1 meter diameter, dual-mode C/Ku-band antenna for global VSAT connectivity. KVH’s VSAT systems feature the Integrated CommBoxTM Modem (ICM), a streamlined belowdecks unit that replaces the need for a rack full of components and integrates all antenna control, onboard network management, and modem functions in one small box. The ICM also receives onboard news, entertainment, and operations content sent via KVH’s IP-MobileCast™ content delivery service.
In addition to designing and manufacturing award-winning satellite antenna products, KVH applies innovation to maritime services as well; in 2017, KVH launched AgilePlans®, a subscription-based Connectivity as a Service (CaaS) model for the commercial maritime sector. KVH’s all-inclusive, no-commitment AgilePlans CaaS offering includes, for one monthly fee: connectivity via the mini-VSAT Broadband satellite network; a TracPhone V-series satellite communications antenna with free installation in select ports; news and training content delivered via satellite; and delivery of chart and weather content. The AgilePlans program has proven so successful that in the fourth quarter of 2018, it accounted for more than 62% of KVH’s total commercial maritime VSAT shipments.
KVH is a mobile technology innovator that provides connectivity solutions for commercial maritime, leisure marine, and land mobile applications on vessels and vehicles, including the award-winning TracPhone and TracVision® product lines, the global mini-VSAT Broadband network, and AgilePlans Connectivity as a Service (CaaS). The company’s Videotel™ business is a market-leading provider of training films, computer-based training, and eLearning for the maritime industry, and its KVH Media Group provides news, sports, and entertainment content with such brands as NEWSlink™ and SPORTSlink™.