Inmarsat A
The original Inmarsat system, which was withdrawn from service at the end of 2007. Based on analogue techniques, it provided global two-way telephony, facsimile, data and telex communications to the maritime community for a quarter of a century.
Inmarsat B
The first digital successor to Inmarsat A, capable of high-quality telephony, facsimile, data and telex services, and compatible with the Global Maritime Distress and Safety System (GMDSS).
Inmarsat C and Mini C
A digital system based on a low-cost satellite terminal, providing two-way store-and-forward messaging, distress calling, EGC SafetyNET™ and FleetNET™, data reporting and polling. The system is approved for use under the Global Maritime Distress and Safety System (GMDSS) and mandatory for Solas-compliant ships operating outside Navtex coverage areas.
Mini M
Introduced in 1995, based on digital technology and capable of two-way voice telephony, alerting, fax and data services. Operates only in the reduced coverage offered by the Inmarsat-3 spot beams, but its notebook size has made it one of the most popular Inmarsat services on land and at sea.
FleetBroadband 500, 250 and 150
Our most advanced maritime service is designed to provide cost-effective, high-speed data and voice communications, including simultaneous voice and data, Standard IP with speeds of up to 432kbps over a shared channel, ISDN at 64kbps, and streaming data up to 256kbps.
Fleet 77, 55 and 33
These three maritime services offer a combination of global voice and fax communications, Mobile ISDN data at 64kbps and 128kbps, and our original always-on IP-based Mobile Packet Data Service (MPDS) for email, web browsing and other office applications.
VSAT
VSAT (Very Small Aperture Terminal) is a satellite communications system that serves home and business users. A VSAT end user needs a box that interfaces between the user's computer and an outside antenna with a transceiver. The tranceiver receives or sends a signal to a satellite transponder in the sky. The satellite sends and receives signals from an earth station computer that acts as a hub for the system. Each end user is interconnected with the hub station via the satellite in a star topology. For one end user to communicate with another, each transmission has to first go to the hub station which retransmits it via the satellite to the other end user's VSAT. VSAT handles data, voice, and video signals.