[Satellite TODAY 09-17-10] ViaSat is set to order a second satellite, which will be launched in 2014, CEO Mark Dankberg told audience members Sept. 15 at the VSAT 2010 conference in London.
     The operator, which plans to launch its ViaSat-1 satellite launch in 2011, said the potential configuration of the ViaSat-2 satellite would be determined by how the company would need to fill holes in ViaSat-1’s coverage area and what pricing plan would bring the greatest value for the company.
     In an April interview with Satellite News, Dankberg said the company has been planning ViaSat-2’s role with ViaSat-1 in mind. “We would want to get a steady improvement in the economics in the key metric of gigabits per second (Gbps) that we get for our dollar on the satellite. We will sell out some of the service areas of ViaSat-1 relatively quickly, so we are also looking to add more capacity in at least some of the ViaSat-1 coverage areas.”
    Dankberg also said the company would seek new international partnerships to add to its domestic distribution and financing network, which already includes Dish Network, DirecTV and the NRTC.
For now, the operator will focus on ViaSat-1, which is projected to cost about $400 million, including launch and insurance. The satellite is being designed and built by SS/L to provide a throughput of about 140 gigabits per second.
    The company also hopes to recover from a series of program delays that may impact its full-year results. In its 2010 second quarter financial results released in August, Viasat said its revenues rose 21 percent over its second quarter 2009 results to $192 million, however, the company was expected to report revenues of $210 million.
    Dankberg said program expenses and delays in contract award decisions on a number of government follow-on and competitive contracts impacted the company’s growth during the quarter. “We anticipate that several potentially significant awards will be decided within the current quarter. The defense budget is clearly under increasing pressure, leading to ordering delays throughout the defense procurement market, but we believe that pressure also creates a more receptive market for ViaSat’s lower cost systems.”
    ViaSat’s government systems segment recorded second-quarter revenues of $88.8 million, a 4 percent decrease over the first quarter of fiscal year 2010 primarily related to lower sales of information assurance and tactical data link products, offset by higher sales of government satellite communication systems.

CORRECTION – An earlier version of this story incorrectly stated that SS/L was chosen to build ViaSat-2.