Stratos said it would use the service to offer enhanced Ku-band coverage and bandwidth while leveraging Inmarsat FleetBroadband to provide an upgrade path to Inmarsat’s Global Xpress Ka-band service, which is expected to be commercially available in 2013.

   Stratos is offering the service at a retail price of $2,999 per month for 60 months.

   “The world’s leading shipping companies need higher volumes of data to support critical applications and increased demand for crew communications. They demand expert consulting and ongoing support to adapt the latest broadband programs to their specific requirements. We are meeting those demands by bringing Inmarsat XpressLink managed IP services into our maritime broadband portfolio, which also includes FBBPlus and FleetBroadband flat fee plans,” Stratos President and CEO Jim Parm said in a statement.