UASC’s vessel Alula. Photo: UASC.

[Via Satellite 10-20-2016] United Arab Shipping (UASC) has installed Marlink’s news, entertainment and television solution XChange Media on 44 vessels, the company announced Oct. 18. The product provides on-demand multi-lingual content to crew personal devices in an alternative manner to on-board satellite TV.

UASC’s fleet is already equipped with Sealink, Marlink’s global VSAT service, which provides IP connectivity for fleet management, electronic document handling systems, and crew communications. Marlink completed deployment of XChange Media across the UASC fleet in less than a week.

XChange Media lets crew use their own smartphones, tablets, and laptops via Wi-Fi either in cabins or with friends and colleagues in communal areas on television whenever their shifts allow. Using XChange Media, UASC does not face extra airtime cost as the Sealink VSAT bandwidth will not be affected, according to Marlink.