MIDDLETOWN, R.I., Feb. 08, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- KVH Industries, Inc., (Nasdaq:KVHI), announced today that global ship manager E.R. Schiffahrt has chosen KVH’s new advanced TracPhone^® V7-HTS antenna equipment and the AgilePlans^TM subscription-based Connectivity as a Service (CaaS) program to bring fast, global connectivity to its container and dry bulk vessels. Installations for the first 11 vessels have begun, with plans for a total of up to 60 vessels throughout 2018.

“We chose KVH for the fast data speed, the reliable data management, the global coverage, and our experience with KVH as a trusted and proven professional service provider,” says Christoph Werner, director of marine & quality for E.R. Schiffahrt, which is based in Hamburg, Germany. “We see the very nature and flexibility of KVH’s AgilePlans program as a great benefit to our business.”

The AgilePlans program provides equipment and airtime for one monthly airtime fee, with no commitment; installation at select ports and maintenance costs are included. KVH, a mobile tech innovator, designed the TracPhone V7-HTS for the mini-VSAT Broadband^sm network, which recently added high throughout satellite (HTS) capacity. The 60-cm TracPhone V7-HTS provides download speeds of up to 10 Mbps and upload speeds of 3 Mbps, enabling vessels to benefit from marine applications designed to improve operational efficiency.

“Our close and long-term relationship with E.R. Schiffahrt was the foundation for moving forward to work together on satcoms,” says Rob Parkin, maritime sales director for KVH. E.R. Schiffahrt has been a customer of KVH’s CommBox^TM network management service, as well as a subscriber to other KVH services, including NEWSlink^TM daily newspapers for seafarers and Videotel^TM maritime training programs.

Thomas Plueschau, KVH’s sales manager for Germany, has played a key role in coordinating the initial AgilePlans order installed at the Port of Hamburg. AgilePlans includes free standard installations at select ports around the world, important for a global ship management company such as E.R. Schiffahrt. “We are thrilled that our AgilePlans program with extensive coverage, fast data speeds, and proven data management, combined with the new TracPhone V7-HTS system, were ideally suited to E.R. Schiffahrt’s fleet needs,” says Mr. Plueschau.

KVH introduced the AgilePlans program for Connectivity as a Service (CaaS) in 2017 as an innovative maritime mini-VSAT^® solution for commercial fleets. This subscription-based business model is designed to address challenges faced by the maritime industry, such as the capital expense of new equipment and the unpredictability of fleet size and business conditions.

In addition to including installation and technical support, onboard hardware, and high-speed airtime, the AgilePlans monthly fee also includes the IP-MobileCast^TM content delivery service for daily NEWSlink content for crew welfare; a package of 20 Videotel maritime training videos; delivery of chart and weather updates via CHARTlink^TM and FORECASTlink^TM; and real-time vessel tracking.

Note to Editors: For more information about KVH’s Connectivity as a Service (CaaS) offering, please see the AgilePlans website. High-resolution images of KVH products are available at the KVH Press Room Image Library.

About KVH Industries, Inc.
KVH Industries, Inc. is a leading provider of in-motion satellite TV and communications systems, having designed, manufactured, and sold more than 200,000 mobile satellite antennas for applications on vessels and vehicles. KVH is also a leading news, music, and entertainment content provider to many industries including maritime, retail, and leisure. Videotel, a KVH company, is a market-leading provider of training films, computer-based training and eLearning. KVH is based in Middletown, RI, with research, development, and manufacturing operations in Middletown, RI, and Tinley Park, IL. The company’s global presence includes offices in Belgium, Brazil, Cyprus, Denmark, Hong Kong, India, Japan, Norway, the Philippines, Singapore, and the United Kingdom.

This press release contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. For example, forward-looking statements include statements regarding the success of our new initiatives; our anticipated revenue and the impact of our future initiatives on revenue; competitive positioning, profitability and service orders; expected data speeds over our new network and the expected level of coverage availability. Actual results could differ materially from the forward-looking statements made in this press release. Factors that might cause these differences include, but are not limited to: the uncertain duration of the adverse impact on our overall revenues of our new AgilePlans model, under which we recognize no revenues for product sales, either at the time of shipment or over the contract term; delays in the receipt of anticipated AgilePlans service orders; the potential failure of such AgilePlans orders to occur at all and the customer’s ability to cancel AgilePlans anytime; unanticipated technical and other challenges that arise during the launch of the new system and service; potential levels of customer demand for data services beyond our current expectations, which could exceed system capabilities in certain regions; competition for satellite capacity, which over time could increase our costs and decrease service availability; and potential unforeseen costs or expenses of providing the products and services included in AgilePlans subscriptions. These and other factors are discussed in more detail in KVH’s most recent Form 10-Q filed with the SEC on November 2, 2017. Copies are available through its Investor Relations department and website, http://investors.kvh.com. KVH does not assume any obligation to update its forward-looking statements to reflect new information and developments.

KVH, TracPhone, AgilePlans, CommBox, NEWSlink, Videotel, mini-VSAT, IP-MobileCast, CHARTlink, and FORECASTlink are trademarks of KVH Industries, Inc. mini-VSAT Broadband is a service mark of KVH Industries, Inc.

For further information, please contact:
Jill Connors
Media Relations & Industry Analyst Manager
KVH Industries, Inc.
Tel: +1 401 851 3824
jconnors@kvh.com