Hughes Network Systems has announced a multi-year agreement whereby its subsidiary, Hughes Network Systems will provide Avanti Communications Group plc and its partner channels, eight (8) gateways and 50,000 customer premise terminals to operate over HYLAS, Europe's first dedicated, high-throughput Ka-band broadband satellite to be launched in 2010.

The initial value of the contract is in excess of U.S. $24 million over the multi-year framework agreement.

In addition, Hughes has agreed to acquire capacity on the HYLAS satellite to expand the managed services it provides to major corporations in a variety of market sectors, including oil and gas, lottery, and retail.

This builds on the Hughes strategy to deliver broadband Internet access and managed services on the most advanced platforms around the world, including its successful SPACEWAY 3 switch-in-the-sky and recently announced Jupiter high-throughput satellite system.

Hughes and Avanti have chosen to work together to build on the competitive advantages that HYLAS will deliver into the European market and the market leading experience Hughes has in delivering Ka-band broadband services in North America, with a proven platform and fully-integrated customer terminals.

Pradman Kaul, chairman and CEO of Hughes commented, "This is truly a win-win relationship. Avanti will break into the market with the combined advantages of HYLAS and our leading, Ka-band satellite networking technology, while Hughes will be able to expand our managed service offerings throughout Europe. Businesses and consumers alike will benefit immensely from this unique combination of strengths."

HYLAS is Avanti's first satellite and has been designed with advanced Ka-band technology to provide high-performance broadcast and data communications services to a wide range of market segments, including broadband Internet access to rural and remote areas underserved by terrestrial networks.

The unique characteristics of HYLAS reduce the overall operating costs of satellite services, both in bandwidth utilization and systems hardware.

Hughes, the global leader in providing broadband satellite networks and services, will supply its market-leading HN platform based on the IPoS/DVB-S2 standard with ACM (Adaptive Coding and Modulation), which results in the most efficient utilization of bandwidth.