Inmarsat (LSE:ISAT.L), the leading provider of global mobile satellite communications services, announced that Maersk Tankers, the owner and operator of one of the world’s largest fleets of product tankers, has chosen to install Inmarsat’s Fleet Media maritime entertainment service on 30 of its vessels as part of a pilot scheme.

Fleet Media is an innovative maritime entertainment solution, which uses Inmarsat’s satellite connectivity to download the latest in Hollywood movies, international films, sports and TV shows to merchant vessels anywhere in the world. This gives crew members access to hundreds of hours of on-demand content that can be watched on a laptop, computer or an iOS or Android smart device via Wi-Fi or physical network connection.

Implementation of the 12 month pilot scheme will commence immediately across 30 of Maersk Tankers’ 80 fleet. After evaluation of the pilot, Maersk Tankers will consider if they will continue with Fleet Media and extend the service to cover the entire fleet. The 30 vessels were selected as the company was already in the process of updating communications equipment onboard and identified an opportunity to also upgrade the crew’s entertainment service.

Ronald Spithout, President Inmarsat Maritime said, “We are extremely pleased that Inmarsat has been selected by Maersk Tankers to deliver entertainment content to their crew. By offering the latest catalogue of Hollywood and international blockbusters, news and sport, we anticipate that crew motivation will see a boost and as a result they could see a rise in efficiency. It is a privilege for us to be working with such a leading maritime company and to enable their crews to benefit from the most advanced technology available. We look forward to extending Fleet Media across the entire Maersk Tankers fleet in due course.”

The Fleet Media service will be powered initially by XpressLink and eventually via Fleet Xpress, the maritime broadband service of Inmarsat’s newly launched Global Xpress high-throughput network.