ViaSat WildBlue Subsidiary Awarded ARRA Stimulus Grant for Rural Satellite Broadband Access

CARLSBAD, Calif., Aug. 19 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- ViaSat Inc. (Nasdaq: VSAT) subsidiary WildBlue Communications LLC has been awarded an estimated $19.5 million in grant funding by the Department of Agriculture Rural Utilities Service (RUS) under the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act of 2009 (ARRA) to connect unserved residents to affordable broadband services. The funding is in response to WildBlue's Western Regional Proposal to the RUS, which focused on providing service to less densely populated areas in 20 western and midwestern states which have no access to broadband services offered by terrestrial carriers, including many areas which are economically disadvantaged.  The award is conditional on reaching agreement on terms and conditions with the RUS.  

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WildBlue, with co-applicants DIRECTV and DISH, submitted its Western Regional Proposal, requesting a grant to activate new subscribers in the western U.S. Subscribers covered by the grant would receive service from one of WildBlue's three current satellites – Anik-F2, WildBlue-1, and AMC-15 – and starting in mid 2011, from the new high-capacity ViaSat-1 satellite.

About ViaSat (www.viasat.com)

ViaSat produces innovative satellite and other digital communication products that enable fast, secure, and efficient communications to virtually any location. The company provides networking products and managed network services for enterprise IP applications; is a key supplier of network-centric military communications and encryption technologies and products to the U.S. government; is the primary technology partner for gateway and customer-premises equipment for consumer and mobile satellite broadband services; and owns WildBlue, the premier Ka-band satellite broadband service provider. ViaSat also offers design capabilities and a number of complementary products including monolithic microwave integrated circuits and modules, DVB-S2 satellite communication components, video data link systems, data acceleration and compression, and mobile satellite antenna systems. Based in Carlsbad, CA, ViaSat includes a number of worldwide locations for customer service, network operations, and technology development.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements that are subject to the safe harbors created under the Securities Act of 1933 and the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Forward-looking statements include, among others, statements that refer to finalization of the award, agreement on terms and conditions with the RUS, and the expected performance of WildBlue service, along with the ViaSat-1 satellite. ViaSat wishes to caution you that there are some factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed in any forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause actual results to differ include: the ability to have manufactured or successfully launch ViaSat-1, or implement the related satellite service; continued turmoil in global financial markets and economies; the availability and cost of credit; the ability to successfully develop, introduce, and sell new products and enhancements; and other factors affecting the communications industry generally. In addition, please refer to the risk factors contained in ViaSat's SEC filings available at www.sec.gov, including ViaSat's most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on any forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date on which they are made. ViaSat undertakes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements for any reason.

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SOURCE ViaSat Inc.