Princess Cruises, a brand of cruise operator Carnival Corporation & plc, has announced a connectivity partnership with SES for early access to SES’ ground-breaking O3b mPOWER satellite-based communications system. SES will provide global, high-performance connectivity to Princess Cruises using its hybrid medium earth orbit (MEO) and geostationary (GEO) network.
The combination of the globally deployed Princess MedallionClass ships, the Ocean Guest Experience “Cloud Connected” Platform and SES’ multi-constellation satellite network aims to ensure seamless land/sea digital experience enablement.
As part of the deal, Princess MedallionClass, which is enabled by the OceanMedallionTM and powered by SES, will be the first cruise ships to access SES’ O3b mPOWER satellite-based communications system. The SES brand will also be incorporated into the OceanMedallion, further symbolising the integrated relationship.
Princess MedallionClass will be fully active on 11 ships by the end of 2020 with a new ship activated every 60 days. The O3b mPOWER from SES will ensure that Princess MedallionClass Ships are not constrained by traditional bandwidth capacity plans. As a Premiere Global Experience and Innovation partner, SES will keep bandwidth ahead of demand with multi-Gbps capacity whenever and wherever needed.
Commenting on the partnership, John Padgett, Chief Experience and Innovation Officer for Carnival Corporation, said: “SES integration into the Global Experience and Innovation team not only provides world-leading connectivity technology and fuelling OceanMedallion capabilities but offers expertise on creating amazing experiences through the fusion of creativity, story, connectivity and media across the world. Our first joint creation, MedallionNet, has significantly elevated the cruise experience for our guests and crew, but more importantly stimulated the creation of leading-edge, cloud-based edge compute models that were previously considered impossible.”
JP Hemingway, CEO of SES Networks, the data-centric business unit of SES, added: “The relentless focus of the Princess Cruises and Carnival Corporation’s Global Experience and Innovation teams to create personalised, simplified and connected guest experiences inspired us to push the boundaries of the connectivity norm at sea. By extending and expanding our Premier Innovation Partner relationship, we are leveraging our unprecedented position in multi-constellation satellite networks and consistently focussing on delivering high performance.”
Add Comment