ViaSat Inc. (Nasdaq: VSAT) is going to be delivering higher speed Internet services to authorized Navy Exchange (NEX) customers at Naval Station Guantanamo Bay (NSGB) in Cuba, all as part of the company's contract with the Navy Exchange Service Command's (NEXCOM) Telecommunications Program Office.
The new service from ViaSat will use a managed Wi-Fi network and expects to offer service plans that will be significantly faster than current speeds available at NSGB. As part of the NEXCOM contract, ViaSat will upgrade local communications infrastructure to support high-speed broadband Internet as well as offer television and Wi-Fi services across all Navy Unaccompanied Housing, Family Housing, Navy Gateway Inns and Suites (NGIS), Navy Lodges and other locations. The ViaSat communications system will support a broad range of voice and data applications, delivering superior broadband services; improved performance; and increased reliability.
ViaSat is currently performing an upgrade of local telecom infrastructure and equipment to improve Internet reliability and stability. Once these upgrades are complete, ViaSat will use its cloud-based managed Wi-Fi services platform to provide support for an increased number of wireless devices per access point—mitigating interference, improving range, performance and ability for end-users to connect to the network.
ViaSat began service rollout in late August and will continue throughout September. Housing residents will be able to subscribe to services from any wireless device through the ViaSat web portal, and services will be available free to the guests at NGIS and Navy Lodge locations.