Viasat Hosts Virtual Event to Celebrate the Liftoff of its China Satcom Partnership
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Viasat entered the Chinese market in 1994, but has recently scaled up its in-flight connectivity (IFC) presence in the region.
Viasat recently announced a cooperation with China Satellite Communications which will see its IFC equipment work over the Ka-band ChinaSat-16 satellite system to meet the needs of domestic and international airlines operating into and out of Chinese airspace.
Specifically, the collaboration will offer passengers a seamless roaming connectivity experience. Airline customers will be able to offer their passengers the ability to stream videos or music, browse the web and social media, and use messaging services and other apps just as they do in other regions of the world.
To mark this milestone, Viasat arranged a virtual event for Chinese media, aviation industry consulting and research firms and internal communications executives from Chinese airlines. The company’s leadership joined the digital event from the APEX/IFSA EXPO in Long Beach, California, with the agenda including a short video tour of Viasat’s booth at the show.
Viasat executives in attendance included Don Buchman, VP and general manager, Commercial Aviation; Meherwan Polad, VP and CCO, Global Mobility; Sandeep Moorthy, CTO, Global Enterprise and Mobility; Shameem Hashmi, VP Global Markets and general manager, Maritime; Michael Jin, Chief Representative of Viasat China; and Tim Barba, Senior Director, Aviation.
Viasat’s partnership with China SatCom was initially announced in 2019. At that time, Viasat revealed that for Chinese airlines, the service will be offered as a China Satcom solution that leverages Viasat’s IFC equipment, but for Viasat’s current and new airline customers outside of China it will remain a Viasat service.