Inmarsat has launched a new and flexible Fleet Xpress plan for superyachts to address the seasonal luxury market, and through its partner e3 Systems has signed up the first superyacht Beagle Star V, a luxury sail yacht, to the plan.

The award-winning Fleet Xpress service has become the fastest growing VSAT service in the 2017 commercial shipping market. With additional flexibility being a key demand for the superyacht industry, where voice and video calls, entertainment and social media can vary widely during the season, Inmarsat has developed a new flexible plan for Fleet Xpress to specifically meet the demands of this market.

Under the plan, owners can upgrade or downgrade their usage quickly factoring in temporary standby and even taking advantage of up to six months of service standby without seeking a contract extension.

Erik Nieuwmeijer Group Sales Director of e3 Systems comments “Superyacht Beagle Star V is the first vessel to take advantage of this new flexible plan. The owner decided to go ahead based on the unrivalled global coverage provided by Fleet Xpress, combined with seasonal flexibility of the plan. We are very pleased to have the first contract for this new plan”

Gert-Jan Panken, VP Sales, Inmarsat Maritime said: “The superyacht market has distinct satcoms need due to its seasonal nature, where owners need the freedom to adjust subscription plans and consume high bandwidth in peak periods then switch to standby in the off-season. Fleet Xpress is a proven global service delivering continuous connectivity and guaranteed performance, freeing the vessel from any limitation to regional coverage or constraints of local terrestrial coverage. In addition Fleet Xpress separates customer data and voice calls, so a customer’s data subscription is not affected by the voice calls made. We’re excited to bring a new level of connectivity and flexibility to the superyacht market,” concludes Panken.