Intelsat General has been selected as the first preferred distributor in the United States of X-band and UHF communications services on satellites operated by Paradigm Secure Communications.
UK-based Paradigm was established specifically to provide satellite communication services to the UK Ministry of Defence and its allied military forces around the world. Paradigm operates the Skynet 4 and 5 fleet of satellites that provide X-band, UHF and other services to military users.
Intelsat General previously announced agreements to partner with Paradigm in providing a range of UHF and X-band services to the U.S. military and other U.S. government users. This preferred distribution agreement has grown out of that previous success.
“This agreement provides an even wider framework for Intelsat General to offer a range of vital tactical communications capacity to the U.S. military around the globe,” said Kay Sears, President of Intelsat General.
“We are gratified to find a strong strategic partner in Paradigm to provide this capacity to our customers. Alliances of this nature are especially important as they offer bandwidth in expanded frequencies that complement the current Intelsat system.”
The designation of Intelsat General as a preferred distributor of Skynet satellite capacity gives the company broader authorization to market Paradigm’s products and services to a wide range of military and government satellite users. “This is an important step for us,” said Eric Beranger, CEO of Astrium Services, parent company of Paradigm.
“We are building on the already successful relationship with Intelsat General to deliver mission-critical services to the United States Department of Defense. This will enable us to meet the DoD needs for high-power, highly-secure capacity provided by the Skynet fleet and to leverage Intelsat General’s existing experience in this demanding environment.”
In 2008, Intelsat General signed a contract with DRS Technologies Inc. valued at up to $48 million to provide the U.S. military with X-band satellite capacity on Paradigm’s Skynet satellites. Intelsat General signed another contract later in the year to provide UHF services on the Skynet satellites to the U.S. Navy
