Inmarsat takes off with BGAN-powered Bebop drone from Parrot at CABSAT

As part of its open technology strategy announced in January, Inmarsat (LSE:ISAT.L), is pleased to announce that the Parrot Bebop Drone has been certified for use over the Inmarsat network, joining the CAP (Certified Application Partners) programme. The certification is announced following six-months of collaboration with Parrot, a leading provider of advanced technology wireless products for consumers and professionals.

The lightweight and portable Parrot Bebop Drone is the first commercially-available drone to stream live media over BGAN and BGAN HDR, Inmarsat’s global 3G IP streaming services, enabling high-quality aerial footage to be broadcast from anywhere in the world. At less than 400g, this is the lightest drone on the market capable of such high resolution footage, allowing safe flights and easy transportability.

The Parrot Bebop Drone is portable, affordable, and cost-effective. Light, easy-to-use and highly responsive, it is equipped with an embedded 14 megapixel fisheye’ camera and a full-digital image stabilisation technology allowing the capture of remarkably stable and clear aerial footage, regardless of the drone movements.

Martin Turner, Director, Media, Enterprise, Inmarsat said: “The Parrot Bebop Drone will give journalists on location another valuable tool to enable them to deliver breaking news first. When paired with Inmarsat’s BGAN and BGAN HDR services live broadcast of aerial footage can provide a unique perspective on, for example, reports on civil disturbances and natural disasters, footage which can prove extremely expensive to get any other way. The drone used in these situations avoids potential hazards to film crews attempting to capture similar footage on the ground. And because BGAN works across Inmarsat’s global network, journalists can deliver breaking news whenever and wherever it happens, even if cellular and terrestrial networks are degraded or not present.”

Inmarsat and Parrot worked together over a six-month period of rigorous testing, to ensure that the drone worked effectively over the Inmarsat network. This followed a collaborative review process between the two companies.

“The potential of drone technology is extremely promising,” said Yannick Levy, Executive VP Corporate Business development, Parrot. “We are seeing the applications of drone technologies in more and more industries; from journalists covering news and remote infrastructure inspections, to environmental applications and precision farming. We are delighted to be working with Inmarsat, and with the Bebop Drone’s certification under the CAP programme. In places with poor terrestrial or fixed network coverage, we see Inmarsat’s network as a crucial part of making live streaming possible.”

Nadeem Khan, Head of Enterprise Applications Enablement, Inmarsat said: “The Parrot Bebop Drone gives customers the ability to use our network in new ways to make them more efficient, and more productive. The solution works with Inmarsat endorsed codecs that customers already use today, meaning that businesses that already broadcast live using BGAN can easily add the Bebop Drone to their toolkit; creating an even more versatile broadcasting solution.”