MIDDLETOWN, R.I., Oct. 3, 2013 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The National Marine Electronics Association (NMEA) honored KVH Industries, Inc., (Nasdaq:KVHI) with its prestigious product awards in two categories, communications and entertainment, at its annual convention in San Diego, California, last week. TracPhone V3 won the "Communications Product Award," and TracVision HD11 won the "Entertainment Product Award." The awards recognize manufacturers and individuals for their innovation and leadership in the marine electronics field, according to NMEA, which is an industry group made up of more than 600 companies, including manufacturers, dealers, and boat builders. This is the 16th consecutive year that KVH has won a NMEA product award for its satellite communications or television systems.
"Winning the recognition of our distribution channel partners is extremely gratifying for us," said Martin Kits van Heyningen, KVH's CEO. "It is especially meaningful coming from skilled NMEA members, who have firsthand experience with the installation and performance of our products, as well as those of our competitors. They work with our TracVision and TracPhone systems every day, and we consider their recognition as the highest honor."
TracPhone V3, which won the "Communications Product Award," is an extremely compact Ku-band VSAT antenna that provides broadband connectivity to boats as small as 30 feet. Designed for today's era of increasing reliance on the Internet and social media, TracPhone V3 enables boat owners to stay connected no matter where they may be cruising. The system utilizes KVH's worldwide mini-VSAT Broadbandsm network, which is the only maritime network using spread spectrum technology (similar to that used in the high-powered 3G and 4G networks on land). This advanced technology makes it possible to offer broadband speeds at up to 2 Mbps from the TracPhone V3 onboard system, which has an antenna that is only 14.5 inches in diameter. KVH built the mini-VSAT Broadband network to provide high-quality, affordable marine satellite phone and Internet service, and offers airtime rates as low as $0.49 per MB, and phone calls for only $0.49 per minute worldwide.
"One of the best features of the TracPhone V3 is the airtime plan flexibility that comes with the mini-VSAT Broadband service," said Todd Tally, Sales Manager of Atlantic Marine Electronics, a subsidiary of the Viking Yacht Company and leading NMEA dealer in New Gretna, New Jersey. "When my customers know they are getting the reliable performance of a KVH product combined with affordable rates for accessing the Internet and making phone calls, they realize they can spend even more time on their boats by staying connected. That makes everyone happy."
TracVision HD11, which won the "Entertainment Product Award," is the world's first truly global satellite TV system with full HD support. Its advanced features include 4-axis stabilized tracking, which ensures superior reception in all locations and conditions, and KVH's TriAD™ technology, which enables simultaneous reception of Ka- and Ku-band broadcasts. A digitally programmable Universal World LNB provides full compatibility with nearly all direct-to-home standard and HD satellite TV services without swapping LNBs or other hardware. Simple to use, the TracVision HD11 system automatically tracks any of the more than 100 satellites contained in its worldwide TV satellite library. New satellites can be added to the library at any time creating a future-proof system.
"For many of our customers, TracVision is absolutely the only choice they will consider for high-definition satellite TV performance on their boats," said Michael Robilio, President of Concord Marine Electronics, a leading marine electronics company located in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. "The TracVision HD11 is particularly popular with boat owners who enjoy cruising in locations around the world. They know they will get the programming they want, no matter where they are."
For additional information about KVH's award-winning TracVision and TracPhone products and for full details about the KVH mini-VSAT Broadband service, please visit www.kvh.com.
About Atlantic Marine Electronics
Founded in 2003, Atlantic Marine Electronics is one of North America's premier marine electronics dealers and is widely known for exceptional global customer support and high-quality installations. The preferred marine electronics dealer for Viking Yachts, Atlantic Marine Electronics is well qualified to offer the ultimate marine electronics solutions for sportfishing boats or any other type of vessel. They have 30 installers working out of three offices, one in New Jersey and two in Florida.
About Concord Marine Electronics
Concord Marine Electronics has been designing and implementing integrated systems for yacht communications, entertainment, security, and navigation for more than 20 years. With a team of experienced professionals on staff, Concord Marine Electronics offers design, engineering, and implementation of systems for a wide range of yachts, tenders, and commercial vessels.
About KVH Industries, Inc.
KVH Industries, Inc., is a leading provider of in-motion satellite TV and communications systems, having designed, manufactured, and sold more than 175,000 mobile satellite antennas for applications on vessels, vehicles, and aircraft. In March 2012, Euroconsult reported that KVH was the market share leader in global maritime VSAT. 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's Headland Media group is a leading provider of commercially licensed news, sports, music, and movies, as well as the Walport Training video series. KVH is based in Middletown, Rhode Island, with facilities in Illinois, Denmark, Norway, the UK, Singapore, the Philippines, and Japan.
This release may contain certain forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. Forward-looking statements include, for example, statements regarding 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 and risks associated with the delivery or performance of critical hardware; the need for, or delays in, qualification of products to customer or regulatory standards; unforeseen changes in competing technologies and products; worldwide economic variances; poor or delayed research and development results; 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, TracPhone, TracVision, TriAD, and the unique light-colored dome with dark contrasting baseplate are trademarks of KVH Industries, Inc. "mini-VSAT Broadband" is a service mark of KVH Industries, Inc. All other trademarks are the property of their respective companies.
CONTACT: Jill Connors
Media & Communications Manager
KVH Industries, Inc.
401-851-3824
jconnors@kvh.com
