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KVH Industries, Inc has taken operational responsibility of the mini-VSAT Broadband service network supporting North America and the Caribbean.

 

These regions were previously managed under a revenue sharing agreement with SES AMERICOM. This arrangement has been terminated in favor of a leasing agreement with SES (News - Alert) AMERICOM for bandwidth on its AMC-21 and AMC-6 satellites.

 

KVH officials said that the company has also purchased the Miami satellite network hub that supports the Caribbean region from SES AMERICOM.

 

Moreover, officials said that the company has applied for operating licenses in KVH's name and has already been granted Special Temporary Authority by the FCC (News - Alert) to continue operation of the mini-VSAT Broadband service in these areas without interruption.

 

"By assuming ownership and control of the North American and Caribbean regions, we continue the evolution of KVH Industries into a global broadband service provider. At the same time, we are ensuring that we have the flexibility necessary to ensure outstanding broadband service and options for our customers in the future," said Brent C. Bruun, vice president of sales and business development, KVH, in a statement.

 

Officials said that the mini-VSAT Broadband service, along with the KVH TracPhone V7 antenna, comprise the first end-to-end 24-inch VSAT hardware, service, and support package available for maritime communications.

 

Officials said that together, KVH and ViaSat (News - Alert) are already offering Voice over IP phone service and Internet access as fast as 512 Kbps (upload) and 2 Mbps (download) at fixed monthly rates to mariners throughout North America, the Caribbean, the North Atlantic, Europe, the Northern Pacific, and the Persian Gulf.

 

The company also recently announced an agreement with SP-JSAT (News - Alert) to expand mini-VSAT Broadband coverage into Asia Pacific waters and the Indian Ocean.

 

KVH Industries, Inc., and its wholly owned subsidiary, KVH Europe A/S, are providers of in-motion satellite TV and communications systems, having designed, manufactured, and sold more than 150,000 mobile satellite antennas for applications on vessels, vehicles, and aircraft.

 

KVH's mission is to connect mobile customers around the globe with the same digital television entertainment, communications, and Internet services that they enjoy in their homes and offices.

 

KVH Industries recently had announced that it has signed a multi-year agreement with SKY Perfect JSAT Corporation (also known as SP-JSAT) to lease satellite capacity on its JCSAT-1B and the new Intelsat (News - Alert)-15 satellites.

 

These satellites will provide mini-VSAT Broadband service coverage in Asia Pacific waters and in the Indian Ocean, respectively, starting late in the third quarter of 2009 and early in 2010, respectively.