Marlink to Drive Digital

Marlink to leverage SES’s ultra-high throughput SES-17 satellite and high-performance O3b mPOWER system to bring high-speed broadband to remote villages and enable demanding business applications

LUXEMBOURG -- (BUSINESS WIRE) --

In support of intensifying government initiatives to close the connectivity gap for more than 7,500 households across urban and rural population centres in French Guiana, Marlink has been awarded a Public Service Delegation contract to set up broadband Internet and 4G/5G services via satellite networks covering the entire French region. SES and Marlink today announced they have signed a 15-year agreement leveraging SES’s multi-orbit geostationary (GEO) and Medium Earth Orbit (MEO) satellite network to deliver life-changing, high-speed services to more than 30,000 users throughout the overseas territory of France.

Funded in part by the European Union, the French Government and the Collectivité Territoriale de Guyane (CTG), Marlink and SES will deliver high performance internet access of 30 Mbps across the country. The companies will build and manage local gateway infrastructure to enable the delivery of nearly 3.5 gigabits per second of high-powered satellite capacity for access to consumer broadband, fixed and mobile services in French Guiana. This will also allow schools and institutions located in the region to benefit from better speeds and lower latency to ultimately bridge the digital divide. The services will be split roughly evenly between the recently launched SES-17 high throughput satellite stationed over the Americas and the next-generation O3b mPOWER system.

“We are proud to bridge the digital divide and be part of this nationwide digital transformation to support economic and social growth by connecting critical services and remote communities, as well as educational institutions for the next 15 years,” said Alexandre de Luca, President, Energy, Enterprise and Government at Marlink. “Our provision of digital services has grown with customer demand, and we are again responding with agility and flexibility to deliver connectivity as a service.”

“The digital divide is a challenging reality, especially for small remote villages in places like the Amazonian Forest in French Guiana, and we are partnering with Marlink to enable digital inclusion in some of the most isolated communities in the world,” said Simon Gatty Saunt, Vice President of Networks Sales, Europe at SES. “SES is honoured to play a role in bringing the most advanced and empowering broadband connectivity to the towns, villages, businesses and people throughout the region, which will unlock the full potential of French Guiana.”

SES-17 is SES’s most high-performance GEO satellite and has played a key role in accelerating digital inclusion programmes across the region and improving access to affordable and high-quality satellite-enabled broadband services for business and residential applications. O3b mPOWER is SES’s second-generation MEO communications system and delivers unrivalled performance, enabling customers' operations with high throughput, predictable low latency, and high availability.

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About SES

SES has a bold vision to deliver amazing experiences everywhere on earth by distributing the highest quality video content and providing seamless connectivity around the world. As the leader in global content connectivity solutions, SES operates the world’s only multi-orbit constellation of satellites with the unique combination of global coverage and high performance, including the commercially-proven, low-latency Medium Earth Orbit O3b system. By leveraging a vast and intelligent, cloud-enabled network, SES is able to deliver high-quality connectivity solutions anywhere on land, at sea or in the air, and is a trusted partner to the world’s leading telecommunications companies, mobile network operators, governments, connectivity and cloud service providers, broadcasters, video platform operators and content owners. SES’s video network carries ~8,000 channels and has an unparalleled reach of 366 million households, delivering managed media services for both linear and non-linear content. The company is listed on Paris and Luxembourg stock exchanges (Ticker: SESG). Further information is available at: www.ses.com.

About Marlink

Marlink is the trusted partner in fully managed smart network solutions, based on an intelligent hybrid network and unrivalled digital solutions. The company provides Smart Network Solutions, connecting people and assets around the globe and across all markets where conventional connectivity cannot reach or is not available. Marlink’s Intelligent Hybrid Network combines global satcom and terrestrial technologies via a proprietary global infrastructure. The Marlink Smart Edge, an integrated service delivery platform, orchestrates and optimises all network elements and applications, from data handling and IT to application-based routing (SD Wan), cloud and Digital Solutions, including remote data and IT, cyber security as well as IoT/OT solutions. This provides customers with full ‘Peace of Mind’ that their chosen network solution is fully optimised, integrated and has the security required to operate more profitably and sustainably, increasing their efficiency and safety through operational optimisation, tracking and routing, monitoring and reporting. Marlink’s Smart Network Solutions are provided as Managed Services meeting the highest quality standards and service level agreements. The company proactively monitors and supports network solutions, providing alerts, reporting and insights on performance and usage of connectivity, systems, and applications as well as advice and consultancy on how to further optimise customer networks.