Inmarsat, the original mobile satcom provider for the maritime industry, has been riding the crest of a wave recently, with users at an all-time high, overall 99.9 per cent satellite reliability and the launch of its Fleet F77, Mobile ISDN and Mobile Packet Data services for the maritime community. Ruth Ling reports on what's new and what lies on the horizon. Twenty years ago, a revolution hit the maritime industry. Satellite communications became available to ships at sea. Back in 1982, when Inmarsat began offering onboard satellite communications, its first and only system was Inmarsat A, which offered voice, facsimile, telex and data services. After nine years of successful service and expansion into most maritime sectors, Inmarsat began offering Inmarsat C.