Mobile satellite communications company Inmarsat announced it is bringing its maritime, aviation and enterprise connectivity capacity to customers in Saudi Arabia through new partner agreements.
The company additionally announced that it has secured new spectrum licenses to deliver its narrow-band (L-band) and high-capacity broadband (Ka-band), Global Xpress, or GX, services in Saudi Arabia, enabling Saudi-based businesses to deploy these services for the first time.
Fixed and mobile satellite telecommunications distributor Sada Al Ammah and Global Beam Telecom have been appointed as Inmarsat’s first distribution partners in Saudi Arabia and the region and they will work closely with Inmarsat’s maritime, aviation and enterprise businesses to roll out those services as well.
Global Beam Telecom & Sada Al Ammah will work with Inmarsat’s Enterprise business to bring connectivity services to land-based users in the Middle East.
Inmarsat’s Maritime business will partner with Sada Al Ammah to distribute connectivity services for merchant and offshore vessels operating in Saudi waters, providing full access to Inmarsat’s Fleet Xpress services.
It has also signed a separate installation agreement with service company Master Systems. Combining the high data speeds of Inmarsat’s GX Ka-band technology with Inmarsat’s flagship FleetBroadband L-band service for backup, Fleet Xpress services will enable the digital transformation of Saudi and foreign-flagged vessels operating in the region.
“Saudi Arabian shipping and offshore companies have shown an increasing appetite for the latest digital services to improve operating efficiencies and Inmarsat is delighted to offer our Fleet Xpress service in Saudi and the region in conjunction with our partners, Global Beam Telecom, Sada Al Ammah and Master Systems,” said Inmarsat president Ronald Spithout in a statement. “Owners now see the need for an ecosystem of value-added services to enable digitalization, rather than just buying a Ku-band VSAT connectivity pipe. That’s why we are seeing demand for Inmarsat’s Fleet Data IoT platform, our Fleet Secure suite of cyber security services and our crew welfare and retention solution, Fleet Hotspot.”
