Thailand's Great Circle Shipping Deploys FleetBroadband from Stratos

Mobile broadband satellite service successfully deployed on 18 commercial vessels

BETHESDA, MD, June 3 /PRNewswire/ - Stratos Global Corporation, the leading global provider of advanced mobile and fixed-site remote communications solutions, today announced it has successfully deployed the Inmarsat FleetBroadband mobile broadband satellite service on 18 commercial vessels managed by Thailand's Great Circle Shipping Agency Ltd.

Great Circle, which provides technical management services for all of the vessels owned by its parent company Precious Shipping PCL, will deploy FleetBroadband on three additional vessels by July. All 21 of those vessels operate worldwide.

Great Circle's selection of FleetBroadband from Stratos is a critical part of its ongoing evaluation and deployment of the industry's latest broadband communications solutions to ensure peak vessel performance and crew satisfaction.

Great Circle successfully integrated FleetBroadband from Stratos with AmosConnect to manage all email, fax, SMS and interoffice communications. The FleetBroadband service also powers numerous other onboard applications, including remote management, which allows headquarters personnel to manage the ship's computers without visiting the vessel. It also includes database synchronization and access to the onboard voyage data recorder. In the future, Great Circle has the option to use FleetBroadband for engine-performance analysis and emissions monitoring, to help reduce fuel costs and comply with emissions regulations.

"FleetBroadband provides us with excellent performance for a wide range of shore-to-ship and ship-to-shore communications, at affordable data rates," said Great Circle Technical Director Jaipal Mansukhani. "Our crewmembers also find the charges for private email to be very reasonable, which has helped maintain high crew morale. The combination of strong service performance and Stratos' diligent customer support convinced us to deploy FleetBroadband and the AmosConnect messaging solution on our remaining vessels."

Stratos is the only Inmarsat Distribution Partner to offer a single IP address service that works globally. The service, known as Public IP Access, enables remote onboard IT support, regardless of the vessel's position or which satellite is used by the vessel. Public IP Access eliminates the need to change IP addresses when a vessel travels from region to region, thus making it easier than ever to deploy FleetBroadband.

Stratos has activated more than 4,000 FleetBroadband systems across all major geographic regions and vessel types. Great Circle chose Stratos as its FleetBroadband provider based primarily on the wide range of value-added services that Stratos offers. Those field-tested services, known as The Stratos Advantage, help ship managers attain the highest possible performance and support from FleetBroadband, at the lowest possible cost.

Stratos President and CEO Jim Parm said, "Great Circle is the latest maritime technical service provider to discover how FleetBroadband from Stratos enables the efficient operation of numerous mission-critical applications. With FleetBroadband as the foundation, ship managers find it easy to derive maximum benefit from applications that help ensure crew satisfaction, business productivity and cost efficiency."

About FleetBroadband from Stratos

FleetBroadband from Stratos provides cost-effective, high-speed data and voice communications - available simultaneously - at speeds up to 432kbps. FleetBroadband from Stratos also provides on-demand guaranteed IP data rates, regardless of the vessel's location. The above-deck, stabilized, compact directional antennas are smaller than most existing Inmarsat Fleet products used today.

FleetBroadband also helps Stratos continue to provide ship managers with innovative crew-communications solutions, to support the recruitment and retention of well-trained seafarers. For example, FleetBroadband from Stratos now is available with a pre-paid web-browsing solution and other valuable services.

Communications managers have discovered that FleetBroadband from Stratos can be rapidly deployed across an entire fleet and, as a standard IP service, seamlessly integrated with head-office networks. Terminals operate globally and the user interface is standard across all products. FleetBroadband from Stratos supports any IP service, as well as traditional circuit-switched voice and ISDN data for legacy applications. Terminal costs are relatively low and the network supports all the latest security protocols.

Stratos offers a wide range of value-added services to provide ship managers with optimal communications performance, management control and cost efficiency. Stratos is the largest supplier of mobile satellite services to the maritime industry, with communications to more than 40,000 maritime terminals worldwide. In addition to FleetBroadband, Stratos' industry-leading portfolio of maritime broadband satellite services includes Iridium OpenPort and the VSAT solutions OceanVSAT and StratosITek.

FleetBroadband from Stratos Features The Stratos Advantage

With the benefit of The Stratos Advantage, FleetBroadband from Stratos is elevated far above baseline FleetBroadband services. The value-added services comprising The Stratos Advantage, including Stratos Dashboard, provide users with cost and traffic control, high-usage metering, firewall management, data optimization, real-time traffic overviews, instant remote provisioning, high security options, easy VPN access, messaging services and a full IP range.

In addition to offering The Stratos Advantage, Stratos works with application partners to deliver broadband business solutions in key maritime business areas. These solutions include voyage management, remote management, IT management and cargo management, which help reduce fuel and operations costs and improve crew and customer satisfaction. Maritime customers can secure more information on FleetBroadband from Stratos by calling their Stratos account manager or by visiting www.thepowerofmobilebroadband.com.

About Great Circle

Founded in 1988, Great Circle Shipping Agency Ltd. provides technical management services for all the commercial vessels owned by its parent company Precious Shipping PCL (www.preciousshipping.com). The Precious Shipping fleet includes bulk carriers and specialized vessels, such as cement carriers. For more information, please visit www.gcship.net.

About Stratos

Stratos is the world's trusted leader for vital communications. Stratos offers the most powerful and extensive portfolio of remote communications solutions including mobile and fixed satellite and microwave services. More than 20,000 customers use Stratos products and industry-leading value-added services to optimize communications performance. Stratos serves U.S. and international government, military, first responder, NGO, oil and gas, industrial, maritime, aeronautical, enterprise, and media users on seven continents and across the world's oceans. Stratos is a wholly owned subsidiary of Inmarsat plc. For more information, visit www.stratosglobal.com.

SOURCE Stratos Global Corporation