Hughes Communications India Ltd, (HCIL), a majority-owned subsidiary of Hughes Network Systems, LLC (HUGHES), the world's leading provider of broadband satellite networks and services, today announced the launch of commercial maritime mobility services in India. HCIL was the first to receive a Flight and Maritime Connectivity (FMC) license in India, which permits the company to provide mobility services within 125 kilometers of the Indian coastline. Now, as the first to offer satellite maritime services in India, HCIL enables reliable and ubiquitous connectivity to vessels sailing in domestic waters – as well as internationally – through roaming partnerships with select maritime providers.
"Maritime operators in India – whether cruiselines, shipping companies or offshore oil operators – are eager to connect their vessels, crews and passengers with high-quality, satellite broadband – and we are ready to serve them today," said Partho Banerjee, president and managing director, Hughes Communications India Ltd. "We estimate that more than 500 Indian vessels will use Indian maritime services in the next three years to stay connected. Two customers have already signed on for our maritime mobility service offering."
Until now, ships entering Indian territorial waters were required to shut down their VSAT connections; now, they can connect to HCIL's high-speed Ku-band satellite network. This connectivity ensures that ships and their crews switch seamlessly to the HCIL network (much like terrestrial mobile roaming), with uninterrupted data and voice applications from the port of origin to the port of destination.
HCIL's maritime mobility services deliver high capacity and efficiency, enabling broadband access that can be used to monitor weather patterns, cut fuel costs, file regulatory documents, order supplies from sea to save time in port and improve safety, among other uses. For crew and passenger welfare, the services make it possible for people at sea to browse the Internet, check social media, watch videos and more – with the quality comparable to that of terrestrial broadband connectivity.
The HCIL maritime service offering includes the Hughes JUPITER™ System platform domestically and provides for roaming among international waterways with global ecosystem partners. The JUPITER System is the next generation platform for very small aperture terminal (VSAT) networks, designed and optimized for broadband services over both high-throughput and conventional satellites.
For more information about the HCIL maritime mobility services, please visit www.hughes.in.
About Hughes Communications India
HCIL is a majority owned subsidiary of Hughes Network Systems, LLC (HUGHES), the leading global provider of broadband satellite networks and services. HCIL is the largest satellite service operator in India providing a comprehensive range of broadband networking technologies, solutions, and services for businesses and governments, including Managed Services to meet every communications challenge. More information is available at www.hughes.in.
About Hughes Network Systems
Hughes Network Systems, LLC (HUGHES) is the global leader in broadband satellite technology and services for home and office. Its flagship high-speed satellite Internet service is HughesNet®, the world's largest satellite network with over 1.4 million residential and business customers across North and South America. For large enterprises and governments, the company's HughesON™ managed network services provide complete connectivity solutions employing an optimized mix of satellite and terrestrial technologies. The JUPITER™ System is the world's most widely deployed High-Throughput Satellite (HTS) platform, operating on more than 40 satellites by leading service providers, delivering a wide range of broadband enterprise, mobility and cellular backhaul applications. To date, Hughes has shipped more than 7 million terminals of all types to customers in over 100 countries, representing approximately 50 percent market share, and its technology is powering broadband services to aircraft around the world.
Headquartered outside Washington, D.C., in Germantown, Maryland, USA, Hughes operates sales and support offices worldwide, and is a wholly owned subsidiary of EchoStar Corporation (NASDAQ: SATS), a premier global provider of satellite operations. For additional information about Hughes, please visit www.hughes.com and follow @HughesConnects on Twitter.
About EchoStar
EchoStar Corporation (NASDAQ: SATS) is a premier global provider of satellite communication solutions. Headquartered in Englewood, Colo., and conducting business around the globe, EchoStar is a pioneer in secure communications technologies through its Hughes Network Systems and EchoStar Satellite Services business segments. For more information, visit www.echostar.com. Follow @EchoStar on Twitter.
