ViaSat Signs New Airborne Broadband System Distribution Agreements With Rockwell Collins and ARINC
ViaSat Inc. (Nasdaq:VSAT) has signed new distribution agreements with Rockwell Collins and ARINC to supply business jets with ViaSat airborne broadband terminals and satellite services. The agreements maintain the four-year relationship with ARINC SKYLinkSM and add Rockwell Collins eXchangeTM as a distribution partner for ViaSat. Under these new agreements, Rockwell Collins has ordered additional airborne broadband systems to be delivered over a five year period while ARINC has extended its satellite services contract with ViaSat from three years to five. These contract actions represent additional orders for ViaSat of just over $26 million.
With over sixty aircraft flying in North America, Europe, Trans-Atlantic, and Caribbean plus over 180 additional systems on order, ViaSat offers the only mobile broadband Ku-band system commercially licensed by the FCC. Using ViaSat ArcLight® spread spectrum modems and gateways, Ku-band service offers much higher data rates at a lower cost than competing airborne broadband systems. The system enables travelers to access their e-mail, Internet applications, corporate virtual private networks, and voice over IP (VoIP) service at speeds comparable to terrestrial cable modem service from the moment they board the plane.
“Bringing Rockwell-Collins on as a distribution partner in the business jet market for our proven Ku-band product underlines the success of our ArcLight mobile broadband system, products, and services in aeronautical markets,” said Bill Sullivan, director of strategy for the ViaSat Broadband Systems group. “We’re also pleased to extend our agreement with ARINC for use of our satellite gateways and network operations services in support of its SKYLink service offering.”
About ARINC (www.arinc.com)
ARINC Incorporated, a portfolio company of The Carlyle Group, provides communications, engineering and integration solutions for commercial, defense and government customers worldwide. Headquartered in Annapolis, Maryland with regional offices in London and Singapore, ARINC is ISO 9001:2000 certified. For more information go to www.arinc.com.
About Rockwell Collins
Rockwell Collins (NYSE:COL) is a pioneer in the development and deployment of innovative communication and aviation electronics solutions for both commercial and government applications. Our expertise in flight deck avionics, cabin electronics, mission communications, information management and simulation and training is delivered by 20,000 employees, and a global service and support network that crosses 27 countries. To find out more, please visit www.rockwellcollins.com.
About ViaSat (www.viasat.com)
ViaSat produces innovative satellite and other digital communication products that enable fast, secure, and efficient communications to 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 to the U.S. government; and is the primary technology partner for gateway and customer-premises equipment for consumer and mobile satellite broadband services. The company owns five subsidiaries: US Monolithics, Efficient Channel Coding, Enerdyne Technologies, Intelligent Compression Technologies, and JAST. These companies design and produce complementary products such as monolithic microwave integrated circuits, DVB-S2 satellite communication components, video data link systems, data acceleration and compression products, and mobile satellite antenna systems. ViaSat has locations in Carlsbad, CA, and Duluth, GA, along with its Comsat Laboratories division in Germantown, MD. Additional field offices are located in Boston, MA, Baltimore, MD, Washington DC, Australia, China, India, Italy, and Spain.