First of Four New Stena Line Ferries Joins Marlink

Long-term partnership meets growing demand for broadband, helping one of Europe’s largest ferry operators to deliver communication service availability and value for more than 7 million passengers a year.

Marlink has added the first out of four additional Stena Line ships to its multi-band communications network. Marlink now serves the entire fleet of Stena Line vessels, ensuring high levels of connectivity for passengers and crew, in addition to operational applications and commercial businesses on board. Marlink will also further increase available capacity to Stena Line vessels with an additional 10-15%, following the tripled bandwidth increase in June 2016, ensuring that Stena Line can meet the on-going growth in demand for bandwidth at sea.

As one of the largest ferry operators in Europe and the world, more than 7 million people a year travel to their destination with Stena Line. The company defines on board communications as a critical passenger satisfaction indicator so it is committed to offering the best available technology and services for its customers.

Stena Line is today well recognized as an early adopter of new communication services, having worked closely with Marlink since the mid-nineties to introduce several ‘firsts’ in the world of maritime communication; including paving the way for multi-band networks that deliver high availability, redundancy and value for money.

Marlink has developed one of the most advanced multi-band networks for the Stena Line fleet, based on seamless integration of VSAT and GSM 3/4G services for connectivity during voyages in addition to in-port Internet Wi-Fi networks. The service was upgraded this summer, with three times more bandwidth added to the Stena-Line ‘Closed User Group’ (CUG), which guarantees bandwidth availability and flexibility for all vessels in the network.

The capacity in Stena Line’s dedicated CUG will be increased by a further 10-15% early in 2017. Stena Line’s industry leading multiband solution enables high availability of voice and Internet, serving hundreds of passengers simultaneously. With a pool of bandwidth reserved just for the Stena Line fleet, the CUG also provides the flexibility to optimize connectivity based on current demands of the fleet.

Stena Line vessels receiving connectivity within 3/4G coverage areas or Wi-Fi while in port will require less from the VSAT CUG capacity, allowing even more satellite bandwidth to be available for other vessels and passengers at sea. Switching between VSAT, 3/4G and port Wi-Fi services when docked is seamless, allowing passengers and businesses on board to benefit from reliable multi-band Internet connectivity that can be relied upon throughout a voyage.

“Reliable and always available Internet access and voice calling services are important for passengers,” said Raimo Warkki, Stena IT. “With Marlink as a long-term partner we have been able to evolve our on board communication services to keep pace with changing demands, and we are confident that the new vessels on the Marlink network will experience the same premium communication capabilities that the rest of our fleet experience.”

“Always at the leading-edge of maritime communication services, Stena Line has proven itself as one of the most forward thinking ship-owners in the world,” said Tore Morten Olsen, President Maritime, Marlink. “We’re delighted to add four more vessels to the Stena Line CUG, helping them to meet the communication needs of even more passengers.”