Inmarsat (LSE:ISAT.L), the leading provider of global mobile satellite communications services, has signed an agreement with NSSLGlobal, appointing the service provider for satellite communications solutions as a Value Added Reseller (VAR) for Global Xpress (GX), serving the military and government markets in Europe.
NSSLGlobal has been offering and supporting Inmarsat’s services for more than 30 years. It was one of the founding service partners for Inmarsat’s maritime safety service – a crucial component of the Global Maritime Distress and Safety System (GMDSS) – and has been a Distribution Partner of Inmarsat’s L-band services since 2009. Most recently, NSSLGlobal signed a GX VAR agreement for maritime services. With its extensive experience of meeting the specialised needs of European government customers, including the UK Ministry of Defence (MoD), NSSLGlobal is well placed to capture the growing demand for higher bandwidth and more sophisticated IP services in this critical market sector.
Andy Start, President, Inmarsat Global Government, commented: “NSSLGlobal has been one of Inmarsat’s most successful government partners over many years, and has unique insight into the requirements of end-users on land and at sea. We are very pleased to welcome NSSLGlobal as one of the early GX VARs in the Global Government sector and we look forward to working very closely with them as our first GX satellite (Inmarsat-5 F1) goes live, which is targeted for mid-year 2014.”
Sally-Anne Ray, Managing Director, NSSLGlobal said: “Providing mission critical secure communications has always been at the core of NSSLGlobal’s business, which is why Inmarsat has always been our partner of choice for this important market. With the rising bandwidth demands of our end-users, alongside the requirement for quick mobility, a seamless global coverage and the highest service availability, Global Xpress will be a significant development for our global government customers.”
Global Xpress will be the first globally available Ka-band broadband satellite network providing high bandwidth services to a range of land, maritime and aviation terminals, delivered through a resilient, secure waveform which is optimised for mobility. Integrated seamlessly with Inmarsat’s current L-band network, Global Xpress will ensure reliable communications in support of mission critical operations in the most challenging environments. The first of three Global Xpress satellites was launched successfully on 8 December 2013, and the full constellation of three satellites is scheduled to be deployed by the end of 2014.