Gilat Satellite's American subsidiary, Spacenet Inc has been selected by Gulf Oil to provide a high-speed satellite communications network to serve its dealers who wish to upgrade their credit authorization and pay-at-the-pump capabilities.
Gulf distributes motor fuels through a network of 1,800 Gulf-branded gas stations and independent retailers throughout the northeastern United States.
Under the terms of the agreement, Gulf dealers across the nation will be able to use Gilat's Skystar Advantage network to deploy fast credit/debit authorization and pay-at-the-pump services to minimize customer-waiting time. Because the VSAT network is not constrained by the reach of land lines, it can provide the same high level of service to every one of Gulf's retail locations – even those in remote areas.
Margaret C. McDonnell, Gulf's Manager of Credit Card Services, said, "By bringing Spacenet's satellite broadband technology to our dealers across the country, we expect to achieve significant cost savings and increase efficiencies at the point of sale.
"Gilat and Spacenet have successfully served major retail petroleum chains worldwide for many years. This experience proved to us that their technology provides the high performance we require to meet the needs of our retailers."
David Shiff, Spacenet's Vice President of Sales and Marketing, said, "Cost-effective, persistent broadband connectivity has become more and more important to all retail organizations as they strive to enhance point-of-sale processes for the benefit of their customers.
"Gulf joins a growing list of petroleum marketers who are turning to Spacenet and VSAT networking to establish and maintain a competitive advantage in the market."
Gulf is expected to begin making the Skystar Advantage VSAT network available to its dealers this quarter. Spacenet's solution for Gulf includes turnkey installation of all VSAT remote site equipment, as well as comprehensive network operations and field maintenance.
