Viasat Responds to UK House of Commons Defence Select Committee Inquiry on UK Defence Industrial Policy: Procurement and Prosperity

Viasat's Written Evidence Shows an Approach that Could Save the UK Ministry of Defence Billions of Pounds, while Vastly Increasing the Country's Defence Mission Capabilities

FARNBOROUGH, United Kingdom, May 14, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Viasat Inc. (Nasdaq: VSAT), a global communications company, submitted a written response ("evidence") to the UK House of Commons Defence Select Committee's inquiry on UK Defence Industrial Policy: Procurement and Prosperity. The Committee's inquiry takes a look at the tension between competition and strategic choice, in an effort to help decide whether a new defence procurement strategy is needed as part of a wider integrated review.

Viasat's evidence was published by the Committee this week, and calls for a modernized procurement and delivery framework to match the defence and security needs of the UK Government. In its submission, Viasat asks the UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) and Government to create an agile, hybrid approach to acquire defence-based systems and services to meet technology acceleration and rapidly changing adversarial threats.

The Viasat approach recommends:

• Building trusted partnerships between MoD, Government and the private sector to drive information advantage;
• Requiring defence procurement procedures to meet stringent competition rules;
• Executing an outcomes-based assessment programme;
• Investing in progressive technology to meet current and future front-line mission requirements;
• Moving integration ownership to industry consortia;
• Sharing risk and design obligations?thereby alleviating the burden on existing programme processes which are not shaped to continuously evolve;
• Allowing industry to provide 'test before you buy' solutions to reduce MoD costs and risk; and
• Driving incremental innovation at speeds that align with needed capabilities.

Steve Beeching, managing director, Viasat UK, said, "The UK Defence Industrial Policy: Procurement and Prosperity inquiry will shine a bright light on the current procurement procedures that have yielded programme delays, overspending and higher risks to the MoD. We feel very strong that a more agile, hybrid approach is needed to procure the appropriate systems and services required to keep pace with technology advancement. By modernizing the procurement process, MoD can work toward better processes to keep the nation safer, its citizens protected and its service men and woman empowered on the frontline of battle."

For more information on the UK House of Commons Defence Select Committee's inquiry on UK Defence Industrial Policy: Procurement and Prosperity, visit their website here.

About Viasat
Viasat is a global communications company that believes everyone and everything in the world can be connected. For more than 30 years, Viasat has helped shape how consumers, businesses, governments and militaries around the world communicate. Today, the Company is developing the ultimate global communications network to power high-quality, secure, affordable, fast connections to impact people's lives anywhere they are?on the ground, in the air or at sea. To learn more about Viasat, visit: www.viasat.com, go to Viasat's Corporate Blog, or follow the Company on social media at: Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Twitter or YouTube.

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 about the potential benefits of implementing Viasat's  recommended procurement strategy?which include the MoD saving billions of pounds, reducing risks and vastly increasing the UK's defence mission capabilities. Readers are cautioned that actual results could differ materially and adversely from those expressed in any forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause actual results to differ include: the MoD's ability to successfully implement Viasat's recommendations, reliance on third parties, unexpected expenses, changes in the global business environment and economic conditions, regulatory changes, and other factors affecting the communications and defense industries 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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