Thuraya Provides Reliability and Value to Marine Market

Showcasing SF2500 voice satellite terminal at CommunicAsia 2012, Singapore
Thuraya Telecommunications Company, the leading international mobile satellite operator, unveiled today at CommunicAsia 2012 in Singapore its SF2500™ maritime satellite voice terminal, developed jointly with partner Addvalue Communications Pte Ltd. Thuraya is using its existing success in providing satellite communications to more than 140 countries around the globe to diversify into selected vertical sectors. Having sold over 600,000 handsets worldwide, the move is another significant step for Thuraya as it continues to expand its marine product line
SF2500™ is the latest offering available to end-users under the recently created Thuraya MarineComms brand, which was launched to provide dedicated support for the marine market and enables Thuraya’s community of distributors and channel partners to provide training and support for marine end-users. The Indonesian Fisherman Association is already an early adopter of the SF2500™ terminal, and Thuraya expects the product’s reliability and value to rapidly attract other global marine end-users.
Mr Samer Halawi, Thuraya Chief Executive Officer, commented: “Our first customer for the SF2500™, the Indonesian Fisherman Association, is exactly the kind of organisation we expect the product to appeal to, and we are very pleased to see them sign up even before the product’s official launch. Fishing is one of the three most dangerous occupations in the world, but lack of affordability has placed reliable satellite communications outside the reach of many fishermen until now. Smaller form factors and more affordable technology mean it’s easier to keep satellite equipment onboard even in very small vessels, making it safer for fishermen to do their jobs and stay in touch with shore.”
The world’s fleet is growing at a rate of 10{e1f18614b95d3cd6e4b3128e1cd15d99b042a60a5a19c19b7a8e07e7495efa10} per annum, and commercial arrivals at major ports have been stable or increasing since 2009. The leisure and fishery sectors are no exception to these growth trends, and pressure for greater and more cost-effective connectivity is on the rise across the marine market as fuel prices increase and disillusion grows with traditional at-sea communications.
Dr Colin Chan, Chief Executive Officer of Addvalue Communications, added: ”Specially designed for medium-sized and small fishing vessels and leisure and surveillance boats operating in harsh maritime environments, the SF2500™  satellite voice terminal can withstand extremely high temperatures and humid conditions. Its robust exterior, which is well-tested and proven in sea trials, ensures superior performance even in rough weather. The terminal provides high quality yet cost-effective communications over the Thuraya network in all weather, anywhere in the coverage area. The advanced GPS navigation system allows sea-vessels to document and transmit critical location and time information, optimising costs and fleet operations.”
Thuraya offers tailored pricing packages that allow customers to subscribe to the plans most suited to their requirements and budgets. Thuraya also offers a Shareplan package, whereby end-users can share individual airtime allocations across their terminal base and mix and match different Thuraya solutions, both voice and data, to generate even greater savings.
Major General (Ret) Yussuf Solichien M, Chairman of the Indonesian Fisherman Association, concluded: “We wanted Indonesian fishermen to feel protected and safe when they’re out at sea carrying out their jobs by putting the best satellite communications at their disposal. The versatility of the SF2500™, its small but powerful antenna, its reliability in different conditions and the built-in emergency response alert system were key factors in our choice.”