Content delivery service to offer economical transmission of large files including electronic charts, weather forecasts, training videos, news, sports, IPTV, IP-radio, and premium movies
MIDDLETOWN, R.I., June 4, 2013 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- KVH Industries, Inc., (Nasdaq:KVHI) today debuted its new IP-MobileCast™ content delivery service for its market-leading mini-VSAT Broadbandsm satellite network at the international Nor-Shipping show in Oslo, Norway. The IP-MobileCast service solves an important problem for maritime customers by providing an affordable way to receive large files through satellite links to their ships. These links are designed to allow electronic charts, detailed weather forecasts, e-learning materials, live news and sports clips, movies, IPTV, and IP-radio to be economically delivered to ships at sea. The new service is expected to be available later this year and will take advantage of additional capacity, delivering content "over the top" of the mini-VSAT Broadband network in a separate data stream without impacting customers' contracted data speeds or airtime rate plans.
"Today, large files for things such as electronic chart database updates and movies are usually recorded on DVDs that are then physically shipped to the vessel and manually loaded onto onboard networks, a process that is slow, unreliable, and expensive," explains Brent Bruun, Executive Vice President of KVH's Mobile Broadband Group. "Transmitting these large files over existing satellite services on a one-to-one basis is technically possible, but usually is either prohibitively expensive or even difficult due to service providers blocking certain file protocols to protect access to shared satellite network capacity. Our IP-MobileCast service will make delivering these large files fast, reliable, and affordable, enabling automatic over-the-air delivery of a new generation of content that is needed to enhance navigation, improve operations, and maintain crew morale."
KVH's IP-MobileCast service is designed to be an end-to-end solution that will use KVH's CommBox™ Ship/Shore Network Manager to efficiently transmit content over the mini-VSAT Broadband network. KVH's new TracPhone® V3-IP, V7-IP, and V11-IP all use the new Integrated CommBox Modem (ICM), which enables the systems to receive and decode multicast content. KVH also offers a stand-alone CommBox server for owners of legacy systems, making the IP-MobileCast service available to all mini-VSAT Broadband subscribers. User devices that may access the multicast data stored on the onboard server include ECDIS navigation systems, desktop, laptop, and tablet computers, smartphones, smart TVs, and any other IP-enabled device.
The IP-MobileCast service will use proprietary software designed to provide advanced error correction, compression, and validation of data integrity throughout the transmission from shore to ship for unparalleled reliability and efficiency. Shoreside servers encode files for transmission and queue them for multicast delivery "over the top" of the mini-VSAT Broadband network. The IP-MobileCast service's patented Forward Error Correction (FEC) technology will help ensure that the CommBox servers on ships receive each file in perfect condition the first time it is transmitted. The unique FEC algorithms deliver the highest level of file reliability by accommodating intermittent non-continuous transmission, which might happen when large transmissions are interrupted by prioritized network traffic or in very poor weather conditions.
The file is transmitted once, and is received by every vessel in the satellite footprint. If the vessel has subscribed to that particular content, the data is stored and decoded using rights management software on the CommBox, and then made available on the onboard server. Normal mini-VSAT Broadband ship-to-shore and shore-to-ship transmissions are prioritized over the IP-MobileCast service and are completely unaffected in terms of speed or added airtime cost.
"Our new IP-MobileCast service is one of four major 2013 initiatives designed to make mini-VSAT Broadband the maritime industry's premier content delivery platform," said Mr. Bruun. "Today we also announced our new TracPhone V-IP series onboard terminals for the mini-VSAT Broadband service. These systems include the new Integrated CommBox Modem (ICM), so each one has the capability to receive the new IP-MobileCast service. We doubled our network capacity over the past several months with the implementation of Variable Coding, Spreading, and Modulation (VCSM) technology, and we expect to complete another major capacity increase later this year to stay ahead of the demands of our growing customer base. Finally, we recently announced the acquisition of Headland Media, the industry's leading provider of commercially-approved news, sports, and entertainment content, and training videos, so we already have both the delivery mechanism and much of the premium content our customers demand."
Additional information about KVH's new IP-MobileCast service and the mini-VSAT Broadband network is available at www.minivsat.com/vip. Information about Headland Media news, sports, entertainment, and training content is available at www.headlandmedia.com.
About KVH Industries, Inc.
KVH Industries is a leading manufacturer of solutions that provide global high-speed Internet, television, and voice services via satellite to mobile users at sea, on land, and in the air. KVH's Headland Media group is the maritime industry's leading provider of rights-approved news, sports, music, and movies, as well as the Walport Training video series. KVH is based in Middletown, RI, with facilities in Illinois, Denmark, Norway, the UK, Singapore, the Philippines, India, and Japan.
This press release contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. Forward-looking statements include, for example, statements regarding the timing and occurrence of new service rollout plans, the functionality, characteristics, quality, cost and performance of KVH products and technology, as well as customer demand, preferences, requirements, and expectations. The actual results could differ materially from those expressed in the forward-looking statements. Factors that might cause such differences include, among others, uncertainties regarding the time needed to complete 2013 initiatives, potential unanticipated technical or legal impediments, unanticipated costs and KVH's dependence on the availability of third-party satellites and services to support broadcasts to mobile antennas. These and other risk factors are discussed in more detail in KVH's most recent Form 10-Q filed with the SEC. KVH does not assume any obligation to update its forward-looking statements to reflect new information or developments.
KVH Industries, Inc., has used, registered, or applied to register its trademarks in the USA and other countries around the world, including the following marks: KVH, KVH logo, TracPhone, IP-MobileCast, CommBox, mini-VSAT Broadband and the mini-VSAT Broadband logo, and the banded, dome-shaped housing of its satellite antennas. Other trademarks are the property of their respective companies.
CONTACT: KVH Industries, Inc. Nicole Mongillo +1 401-847-3327 nmongillo@kvh.com
