[SatNews] Faster, better and more affordable...

For millions of consumers with a need for high-speed Internet, the broadband choices just got a lot better. ViaSat Inc. (NASDAQ: VSAT) will launch Exede by ViaSat high-speed Internet service on January 16, offering speeds up to 12 Mbps (megabits per second) downstream and up to 3 Mbps upstream beginning at $50 per month. Although satellite Internet has been available for years, ViaSat has completely transformed satellite broadband technology and now delivers a broadband experience similar to some of the fastest terrestrial broadband services for most applications.

"With our new Exede broadband service, customers across the United States will have a way to get exceptional speed whether they live in a city, suburbs or a more rural area," said Tom Moore, senior VP of ViaSat. "Our new Exede service speeds make us very competitive with wireless home broadband service as well as legacy DSL and many cable services."

The rollout of service is a major milestone in a process that began in 2008 when ViaSat introduced its next-generation satellite system, representing the most significant capacity leap in the history of satellite technology. The system integrates ViaSat-1, the world's highest capacity satellite, with an advanced, next generation ground system.

The Exede service also includes advanced web acceleration technology to provide an Internet web browsing experience with "feels like fiber" performance. Through a constantly evolving variety of techniques that go far beyond simple caching of web content, this new web acceleration technology quickly delivers pages, even on media and video intensive websites.