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Viasat’s Inmarsat-6 F2 satellite suffers power failure on way to orbital position; total loss feared
TUPPER LAKE, NY — Viasat’s Inmarsat-6 F2 satellite, launched in February, has suffered a power-system failure that may end its useful life and result in a $350 million insurance claim, industry officials said. The event, which would be the first major satellite failure in London-based Inmarsat’s 40-plus-year history, would also be a rare stain on…
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Viasat: Strengthened by Inmarsat assets, even a total loss of Viasat-3 Americas would not be catastrophic for us
TUPPER LAKE, NY — Viasat Inc. said it expects increased revenue and gross profit in the coming two years even if the antenna defect on its newly launched Viasat-3 Americas satellite proves to be fatal to the satellite’s performance. In an Aug. 9 investor call, Viasat Chairman Mark D. Dankberg delivered very little news about…
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Veteran maritime connectivity providers Tototheo, Speedcast say Starlink is an unexpected industry phenomenon
SINGAPORE — Two maritime satellite mobile services provider, both with long experience with satellite systems, said early results of the SpaceX Starlink service on commercial ships have been so good that customers are asking for it even before the service providers propose it. Cyprus-based Tototheo Maritime Group and Speedcast, which is U.S.-based but has a…
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Viasat/Inmarsat reminder to owners and insurers of large satellites: ‘We are all dependent on SpaceX’
LONDON — “Today, we are all dependent on SpaceX.” This is how Marc Benhamou, head of Inmarsat’s satellite and launcher procurement division, now part of Viasat Inc., summarized the current market for medium- and heavy-lift rockets. In a June 20 presentation here to the Seradata Space Conference, a conference in which insurance underwriters and brokers…
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Intelsat: RFP for 18-satellite MEO-orbit constellation goes out this summer, with the first to be in orbit in 2027
LONDON — Satellite fleet operator Intelsat is preparing a bid request to industry for 18 satellites in medium-Earth orbit (MEO) to launch starting in 2027 to preserve frequencies has registered with international regulators. The satellites, to launch into 8,000-kilometer orbit with an inclination of about 60 degrees, will operate from three planes of six satellites…
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Viasat completes Inmarsat purchase, the biggest satcom merger in 20 years; market gets a real LEO v GEO broadband matchup
PARIS — Satellite broadband hardware and service provider Viasat Inc.’s purchase of London-based mobile satellite services fleet operator Inmarsat, the biggest satellite communications consolidation in 20 years, was completed May 30 after 18 months of regulatory review. The November 2021 valuation of $7.3 billion — $815 million in cash, $3.1 billion in Viasat stock and…
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EU Commission approval of Viasat’s purchase of Inmarsat was the last regulatory barrier; deal to close within days
PARIS — The European Commission’s May 25 approval of Viasat’s acquisition of Inmarsat came more than a month earlier than the maximum 90-day in-depth-investigation period and validated what British regulators had already determined: The combined company will not become so dominant in in-flight connectivity (IFC) in Europe as to stifle competition. The Commission’s main focus…
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Inmarsat, its purchase by Viasat believed imminent, delivers Q1 growth in all four major divisions
PARIS — Mobile satellite service provider Inmarsat, which believes its purchase by Viasat Inc. is imminent after 18 months of regulatory review, reported increased revenue in all four of its main operating verticals for the three months ending March 31, and an especially large rebound in the sales of its handsets, which had been depressed…
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Inmarsat buys 3 GEO-orbit L-band satellites from startup builder Swissto12, says ESA’s technical reassurance was key
UPDATE May 25: This story has been updated to include Inmarsat’s contract with Australia and New Zealand to provide positioning and navigation services using one of the Swissto12-built I-8 satellites. PARIS — Mobile satellite services provider Inmarsat has purchased three satellites from startup prime contractor Swissto12 to provide resilience for Inmarsat’s L-band safety-of-life services in…
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Viasat: Inmarsat L-band spectrum shows promise for commercial and military direct-to-device markets – yes, from GEO orbit
PARIS — Satellite broadband service and hardware provider Viasat Inc. said its first Viasat-3 terabit-per-second-throughput satellite, launched April 30, should be in service by August, and that Viasat’s purchase of mobile satellite services provider Inmarsat is likely to close within a month. Both events — the deployment of the Viasat-3 Americas satellite and the closing…
