[Via Satellite 04-29-2016] The European Space Agency (ESA) and ViaSat are launching a new three-year, multi-million dollar pilot program called the High Capacity Satellite Applications Factory Initiative (HCS Initiative) to spur on the development of new products to leverage “HCS” systems.

The HCS Initiative involves the collaboration of ESA and its member states, industry, universities and ViaSat. The goal of the HCS Initiative is to simplify and shorten the funding application process to reduce time-to-market for new products, applications and services that can contribute to, or benefit from, advanced HCS systems.

Kicking off the HCS Initiative, ESA and three member states — the U.K., Switzerland and Belgium — will provide $34.3 million in funding, and ViaSat will introduce and manage an online portal known as the Space Hub. This portal will provide a collaborative space to share knowledge and experience; identify potential partners and opportunities; and ultimately produce more effective HCS technologies, applications and services. Projects selected under the HCS Initiative will receive up to 50 percent funding, with assistance from ViaSat that could include technical support on proposal preparation and project execution, program management, test bandwidth and hardware support.

ViaSat is developing a network of three high capacity satellites called ViaSat 3, with the second in the series planned to cover Europe. The company is also forming a joint venture with Eutelsat of France for high-speed satellite services across Europe.