Speedcast and International Cruise Line Achieve New Industry Milestone, Supplying Highest Continuous Capacity in Cruise History
Speedcast, a leading communications and IT services provider, announced today the successful implementation of a specialized connectivity solution delivering unparalleled data rates for an international cruise line’s newest vessel. The innovative, satellite-to-ship tracking solution was deployed for the ship, which runs on liquified natural gas and can accommodate 6,500 passengers.
The cruise line’s new connectivity service was launched as part of the vessel’s inaugural 14-day transatlantic crossing, and now plays an integral role in the success of the vessel’s year-round service. Speedcast is delivering dedicated capacity, which is a CIR-based (committed information rate) service versus a ‘best effort’ solution. The capacity is available at all times throughout the itinerary.
Supporting the ship’s onboard network is Speedcast’s TrueBeam technology, a software-driven platform that maintains quality of service across satellite beams with automated, smart beam-switching and traffic-steering based on location, footprint contours and committed information rates. Speedcast’s TrueBeam platform enables comprehensive tracking between the satellite and ship for the highest levels of availability, meeting full vessel capacity demands.
The dual Ka-band antenna solution provides non-metered bandwidth throughout the full itinerary of the ship for the next two years, with the ability to burst to 1.8 Gbps on demand. This represents the greatest bandwidth delivered to a ship on a consistent basis in cruise industry history. The bandwidth being delivered to the single ship surpasses the total capacity delivered across the cruise operator’s entire fleet just a decade ago. Speedcast has previously partnered with the customer to demonstrate the ability to deliver significant bandwidth levels for bursting, setting milestones in 2016 and 2018. Now, with the implementation of Speedcast’s TrueBeam technology and complete satellite-to-ship tracking, the ship is experiencing consistent bandwidth levels throughout the entire itinerary, including transatlantic crossings.
The patented TrueBeam technology is part of Speedcast’s advanced network management suite, which also includes the company’s SIGMA network management platform, enterprise level SD-WAN service, and Cybersecurity as a Service. Together, these tools deliver unsurpassed quality of service across satellite, cellular and fiber connectivity for customers.
“Since the cruise industry began its return to sea, demand for bandwidth has accelerated beyond all expectations to meet the needs of passengers,” said Brent Horwitz, Senior Vice President, Cruise at Speedcast. “This unique technical solution, in which the satellite coverage follows the ship across its itinerary, ensures that the ship always remains in the center of the beam, delivering maximum bandwidth levels consistently. We’re proud to bring this industry-first level of bandwidth to our customer’s latest ship and to implement it on short notice to support their growth requirements.”