
Contributing to High-speed Communication and Safe Navigation for Crewmembers and Passengers
Mitsui O.S.K. Lines, Ltd.
KDDI Corporation
August 1,2023
-- TOKYO Mitsui O.S.K. Lines, Ltd. (MOL; President & CEO: Takeshi Hashimoto; Head Office: Minato-ku, Tokyo) and KDDI Corporation (President: Makoto Takahashi; Head Office: Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo) today announced that from August 2023 onward, the two companies will conduct trial use of satellite broadband
Starlink Business (in Japanese only) onboard a MOL Group-operated cruise ship, ferries, and a coastal RORO vessel aimed at enhancing the communication environment aboard ships.
Starlink enables a communication environment with a maximum download speed of 220 Mbps [
1] during the voyage, and contributes to High-speed Communication and Safe Navigation for Crewmembers and Passengers. The trial will evaluate the system from both technical and economic standpoints, and MOL Group plans to introduce the system from autumn 2023 onwards, depending on the situation and schedule of each ship.
ferries Sunflower Sapporo and Sunflower Satsuma, and
coastal RORO vessel Musashi Maru>
Background
At sea, signals from far-off base stations are weak, making it difficult to use ordinary high-speed cell phone communications. Conventionally, satellite communication services using geostationary orbiting satellites have been utilized, but the increasing volume of information and data presents challenges for real-time ship-to-shore communication.
For ocean shipping companies that operate ships at sea, improving the quality of ship safety management is an important initiative to ensure safe navigation. Improving the onboard communication environment is critical to more effectively sharing systems and data related to ship operations with land-based staff in real time.
Many crewmembers, especially younger ones, have expressed a need for the same high-speed Internet access that is available on land, so the working environment must be improved by eliminating the onshore/offshore information gap. In addition, cruise ship and ferry passengers are increasingly requesting high-speed Internet access onboard as a way to enrich their travel experience.
About the Trial In this trial, a total of four ships the cruise ship Nippon Maru operated by MOL Cruises, Ltd. [
2] (President: Yusuke Ueno; Headquarters: Minato-ku, Tokyo), the ferry Sunflower Sapporo and RORO vessel Musashi Maru operated by MOL Ferry Co., Ltd. (President: Naotoshi Omoto; Headquarters: Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo), and the ferry Sunflower Satsuma operated by Ferry Sunflower Limited (President: Mitsujiro Akasaka; Head Office: Oita-shi, Oita Prefecture), will be equipped with the Starlink Business communication service for maritime use [
3]. The initial trial will be conducted with crewmembers and employees, and based on the results, the companies will discuss expanding the use of the trial to passengers onboard.
About Starlink for Trial Use
A communication service for maritime use of Starlink Business, a satellite broadband service provided by KDDI to corporations and municipalities.
Starlink enables a communication environment with a maximum download speed of 220 Mbps during the voyage. The environment will be comparable to land-based internet service, enabling easy access to information necessary for navigation.
High-speed communication will also enable passengers on cruise ships and ferries to share videos and other information taken during their trip in real time.
MOL Group has already conducted trials on ocean-going ships and confirmed an improvement in communication speed of up to 50 times compared to existing communication facilities [
4].
MOL and KDDI will offer more comfortable cruises and improve the quality of work and life onboard for crewmembers while further pursuing digital transformation at sea, by utilizing satellite communication services that enable high-speed communication in maritime areas where it is difficult to establish a communication environment.
[1]
The July 3, 2023 KDDI News Release
Starlink is now available for use at sea
First to offer service, starting from within Japans territorial waters (in Japanese only)
[2]
On August 1, 2023, the company name was changed from Mitsui O.S.K. Passenger Line, Ltd. to MOL Cruises, Ltd.
[3]
Use at sea is limited to 12 nautical miles (approx. 22 km) seaward of the reference coastline (baseline).
Mobile use on land is not allowed. Communication speed is on a best-effort basis.
[4]
The December 12, 2022, MOL press release
MOL to Introduce Trial Use of Starlink Satellite Communication Service onboard Ocean-going Vessels
-More safer operations and improved quality of life for crew members-
The June 6, 2023 MOL press release
MOL Conducts Sea Trial of Starlink Satellite Communication Service Onboard Ocean-going Vessel
- Confirmed up to 50 Times Faster Communication Speed -
The information contained in the news releases is current at the time of publication. Products, service fees,service content and specifications, contact information, and other details are subject to change without notice.
Most recent headlines
09/11/2025
Dalet today announced a transformative leap forward for media operations: Agentic Artificial Intelligence (AI) that unifies the Dalet ecosystem under one natura...
18/10/2025
New England Sports Network (NESN) has chosen Harmonic, working with Astound Business Solutions, as its enterprise technology partner to transform primary distri...
18/10/2025
NEW ORLEANS, La. In the run-up to the start of the NBA season, WVUE-TV and Gray Local Media have announced a deal with DirecTV that will greatly expand access t...
18/10/2025
Berklee Celebrates 40 Years of the Fall Together Concert Faculty composers Bob Pilkington and Greg Hopkins are among the featured artists for this year's ...
17/10/2025
NEP Group Receives New Equity Investment From 26North Partners LP, Co-InvestorsCarlyle remains the largest shareholder as the company prepares for the futureBy ...
17/10/2025
Apple Lands Five-Year Deal for F1 Distribution in the U.S.Besides airing on Apple TV, the sport will be amplified on other Apple servicesBy Ken Kerschbaumer, Ed...
17/10/2025
SVG Sit-Down: Marshall Electronics' Bernie Keach on the Future of PTZ Camera...
17/10/2025
L2 Productions' REMI Facility in Austin Can Produce Content From AnywhereMusic festivals, sports events are produced via flypacks and remote control roomsBy...
17/10/2025
By Lucy Spicer
One of the most exciting things about the Sundance Film Festival...
17/10/2025
(L-R) Christopher Meyer, Addison Timlin, Cooper Raiff, Lili Reinhart, Alyah Chan...
17/10/2025
M sica e arte se uniram em uma noite especial na semana passada na ZIV Gallery, ...
17/10/2025
Music and art came together for one special night last week at ZIV Gallery, an i...
17/10/2025
Spotify and FC Barcelona are extending our partnership through 2030, continuing a collaboration that's redefining how fans, players, and artists connect. Th...
17/10/2025
MURRIETA, Calif. The Sports Fishing Championship (SFC) has deployed DigitalGlue's creative.space storage platform to streamline video production by centrali...
17/10/2025
BELLEVUE, Wash. Football continued to cement its reputation as a bulwark of TV advertising in Q3 2025 with new data from iSpot that showed both the NFL and coll...
17/10/2025
The Sports Fishing Championship (SFC), the premier competitive saltwater fishing series, has transformed its production workflow by adopting creative.space, the...
17/10/2025
QuickLink, a leading provider of award-winning multi-camera video productions and remote contribution solutions, announces the release of StudioPro Version 4, ...
17/10/2025
Although the annual Grammy Awards celebration is best known for recognizing achievements in the recording industry, the show often proves a visual spectacle as ...
17/10/2025
OpenDrives, Inc., a leading provider of software-defined data storage and data services, has promoted Alex Dunfey to Chief Technology Officer (CTO) from his for...
17/10/2025
The University of Arizona (UofA) has significantly upgraded its broadcast communication infrastructure with the integration of Riedel Communications' advanc...
17/10/2025
Harmonic (NASDAQ: HLIT) today announced that New England Sports Network (NESN), owned by Fenway Sports Group and Delaware North, has selected Harmonic as its en...
17/10/2025
Austin PBS has recently upgraded its facility-wide communications infrastructure, deploying Clear-Com 's Eclipse HX, FreeSpeak II beltpacks, and V-Series ...
17/10/2025
ZEISS announces an open call for the closed BETA testing phase of CinCraft Virtual Lens Technology, the innovative digital tool that brings authentic lens chara...
17/10/2025
Situated in the town of Kokkola, Centria University of Applied Sciences offers higher education across five core fields: engineering, business, social and healt...
17/10/2025
Public information channel in Georgia, USA, to implement a powerful, simple, and cost-effective playout automation platform.
Pebble, the leading automation, co...
17/10/2025
HBO Max is reporting that it has launched in 15 new markets, including Bangladesh, Cambodia, Macau, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Ukraine, boosting the streaming serv...
17/10/2025
Netflix said it will make a major push into video podcasts, inking a wide-ranging deal with Spotify through which it will offer 16 podcasts in the U.S. starting...
17/10/2025
Lexington, Ky. As part of a push to highlight its advanced advertising capabilities, Viamedia has launched a new AI-powered ad tech platform and officially rebr...
17/10/2025
NEW YORK QuickLink has announced the release of StudioPro Version 4, which the company is calling the most significant upgrade yet to its flagship video product...
17/10/2025
NEW YORK and CUPERTINO, Calif. Apple and NBCUniversal said they will sell Apple TV and Peacock streaming bundles to U.S. subscribers starting Oct. 20....
17/10/2025
Q&A with Boston Conservatory Choral Conductor Stephen Spinelli How his research into the lost manuscripts of composer Florence Price led to a Grammy-winning c...
17/10/2025
Open Source AI Week kicks off on Monday with a series of hackathons, workshops a...
17/10/2025
AI has ignited a new industrial revolution.
NVIDIA and TSMC are working togethe...
17/10/2025
Gexcon is a trusted safety and risk management partner for complex, high hazard environments. ICG has been a dedicated marketing partner to Gexcon since 2018, b...
17/10/2025
Here is your host, Patrick Kielty!
After an incredible breakthrough year, Kingf...
16/10/2025
SVG Sit-Down: FUJIFILM Execs on GFX ETERNA 55 Camera, Importance of Shallow-Dept...
16/10/2025
Squash's Most Ambitious Broadcast Production To Be Deployed at Comcast Busin...
16/10/2025
Main Street Sports Group Inks Deal With Omaha Productions, Launches Original-Con...
16/10/2025
A Historic Precursor? FIFA, HBS, DAZN Offer an Inside Look at Production of FIFA...
16/10/2025
Prime Video Offers Sneak Peak at New NBA on Prime StudioThe massive 13,000-sq-ft, two-story studio features a LED regulation half court and hoopBy Jason Dachman...
16/10/2025
SVG Remote Production Forum Draws Record Crowd for Visit to PGA TOUR Studios, De...
16/10/2025
BitFire's Ben Grafchik on How Growing Cloud Workflows Are Impacting the Live...
16/10/2025
AI technology is advancing quickly, bringing both new creative possibilities and...
16/10/2025
In 2017, Imani Ellis launched CultureCon, a conference that's become a must-attend event for more than 10,000 diverse creatives and Black professionals to c...
16/10/2025
It might still be a little early to break out the tinsel and mistletoe, but Spotify's already queuing up some holiday magic. This year's Spotify Singles...
16/10/2025
Earlier this year, our in-house publishing imprint, Spotify Audiobooks, put out ...
16/10/2025
VAMPIRE has been integrated onto GM Defenses Infantry Squad Vehicle (ISV), providing a mobile solution to effectively and affordably counter small drone threat...
16/10/2025
The AgilePod mounted on the host aircraft....
16/10/2025
60% say infotainment systems are a critical purchasing or leasing consideration,...
16/10/2025
NEW YORK The Broadcasters Foundation of America has launched its 2025 Year-End Giving Campaign, which seeks to raise donations from tax-deductible personal and ...