Avanti, InSat, Newtec finish testing Ka-band satellite Internet hub in Cyprus

A joint announcement by Avanti Communications, InSat, and Newtec reported a successful conclusion of their joint testing of the new Ka-band satellite Internet hub infrastructure built by Newtec in the island nation of Cyprus.

Newtec serves as the exclusive technology partner for all InSat services and a partner of satellite operator Avanti. In addition to installing the Cyprus Ka-band hub, Newtec will also provide two-way satellite broadband technology. Its MDM2200 broadband terminals can provide download speeds of up to 22 Mbps for InSat's ISP customers.

In fact, according to InSat, Afghan telecom and Internet service providers are already testing their managed services. Insat has installed on-site control stations and customer terminals in Afghanistan, which allows local Internet service providers to test out its Hi-Stream broadband Internet-from-satellite service.

InSat is a managed services provider (MSP) that uses the Newtec Sat3Play Broadband platform under the Hi-Stream brand name to provide IP access services for businesses and consumers. The service leverages the significant broadband capacity of Avanti's HYLAS 2 Ka-band satellite.

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Honeywell signs MDA with Inmarsat for GX Aviation services

Inmarsat and Honeywell have entered into a master distribution agreement (MDA) that will see Honeywell distributing Inmarsat’s Global Xpress Aviation satellite Internet services to the business aviation sector.

In addition to signing the MDA, Honeywell has secured five years worth of GX capacity. It has also reserved additional satellite broadband capacity up until 2021. This is a compelling endorsement of the future GX service.

Global Xpress is a future high-throughput satellite broadband network that can deliver speeds of up to 50Mbps anywhere in the world. Inmarsat’s GX Aviation solution will leverage the Ka-band satellite network to generate in-flight satellite Internet connectivity to aircraft cabins.

Inmarsat plans to launch GX during the last quarter of 2014. Honeywell will introduce and distribute the GX Aviation Internet-by-satellite solution to business aviation customers in 2015.