Intelsat today announced it has signed an agreement with APT Mobile Satcom Ltd. (APSATCOM) to deliver a global maritime network for APSATCOM’s customers in China.
Under the multi-year agreement with Intelsat, APSATCOM will be Intelsat’s first partner, in China, to offer IntelsatOne Flex for Maritime services, which include global interconnection and backhaul to APSATCOM’s data centres. The platform – a managed service supported by Intelsat’s constellation of widebeam and HTS Intelsat EpicNG satellites – will be combined with a 1-metre antenna for Chinese vessels. This will support APSATCOM’s maritime VSAT services, which is the company’s main business at the moment.
“To support the growing communications requirements of our maritime customers, we needed a high-powered, reliable managed services platform,” said Jason Li, CEO of APSATCOM.
“When designing the platform, our main goal was to enable simple access to Intelsat’s mobility network while allowing our Solution Partners to customize and maintain full control over service differentiation — something that is not possible with global maritime service platforms offered by other companies,” said Mark Rasmussen, Intelsat’s Vice President and General Manager, Mobility Services.
APSATCOM, a joint venture between APT Satellite (Shenzhen) and various other state-owned enterprises, was incorporated in Shenzhen, China, in 2016, The company is planning to launch its own High Throughput Satellites (HTS) constellation of four satellites, all of which will be manufactured and launched in China through the China Great Wall Industry Corporation (CGWIC). This will be China’s first global HTS satcomm constellation. Its first satellite, APSTAR-6D, will be launched and in-service at the end of 2019.
