You're miles at sea in the Caribbean aboard a luxury cruise ship, and you've got mail!
As of Sept. 24, guests 12 years of age and older aboard Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines' Sovereign of the Seas will be able to send and receive personal e-mail. They'll also have the option — after all, they are on vacation! — of keeping up with news, sports, the stock market, weather reports and many other developments anywhere in the world.
For those who do not already have an e-mail account, a new one can be set up.
A dedicated satellite modem connection to AOL, GTE Internet, Hotmail, Netcom, USANet, Yahoo! and other servers will make the access possible. ATCOM/INFO, a leading supplier of services and software for public high-speed Internet access, is providing the software, which utilizes state-of-the-art IBM technology.
From computers aboard the ship, passengers will even be able to send virtual postcards picturing themselves in exotic places. Digital cameras mounted on the computers can take users' photographs and then electronically place the images in settings onboard the ship or in ports of call. Users can add their personal text messages and send them off to as many e-mail addresses as they like.
Direct links will be available to websites in news, finance, sports, weather and entertainment. A "free zone" will allow guests access to Royal Caribbean International and select IBM sites, along with instructional areas and advertising.
"We are excited to bring the latest technology to our guests with the help of business leader IBM," Royal Caribbean president Jack Williams said. Plans call for the service to be installed aboard all cruise ships in the Royal Caribbean fleet by next March.
The partnership with IBM is the latest in a series initiated by the company "to bring all the comforts of a land-based vacation destination to the high seas." Others have led to the establishment of a Johnny Rockets restaurant aboard the newest liner in the fleet, Voyager of the Seas, and a Sharper Image store aboard Monarch of the Seas.
