Millions of people travel, work, and live on the ocean at any given moment. Cruise passengers, cargo ship crews, offshore workers, and yacht travellers — they all keep using their phones and laptops, streaming content, browsing, and shopping online. The difference is how they connect: not through a land-based mobile tower, but through dedicated satellite networks designed specifically for life at sea.
This creates a blind spot for most advertisers. And for the brands willing to look beyond the coastline, it represents a largely untapped opportunity.
Why normal networks don't reach people at sea
Standard programmatic targeting relies on terrestrial infrastructure — mobile carrier signals, land-based ISP ranges, cell tower geolocation. That infrastructure simply doesn't exist in open water. Past a few nautical miles from shore, someone's device is no longer connected through Vodafone or AT&T or Jio. Their traffic is flowing through a maritime satellite provider, and the IP address their device uses belongs to a completely different network layer — one that most DSPs don't recognise or map to audience segments.
This is why typical campaigns go dark the moment the audience sails out of port. The people are still there, still browsing. The targeting just can't see them.
The networks that connect people at sea
Several major providers power satellite internet connectivity across the world's oceans. Each serves different vessel types and routes, but together they cover an enormous share of global maritime traffic.
Starlink, SpaceX's low-earth orbit constellation, has become one of the fastest-growing maritime connectivity solutions available. Its high speeds and low latency — a significant improvement over older satellite systems — have driven rapid adoption across cruise lines, commercial vessels, and private boats. Starlink is no longer just a land-based product; it's increasingly the backbone of internet access at sea, and Targetoo already has confirmed inventory available through it.
Anuvu (formerly Global Eagle) is a major connectivity provider for the cruise and commercial maritime sectors, with a strong presence on passenger vessels. Marlink is one of the most established names in maritime VSAT, serving a wide range of vessel types from cargo ships to offshore platforms. Targetoo has confirmed inventory available through both Anuvu and Marlink, meaning campaigns can be activated against audiences on these networks today.
Beyond these three, the maritime connectivity landscape also includes SES, one of the largest satellite operators in the world with both GEO and MEO coverage; DROAM, which specialises in maritime roaming connectivity; and KVH, known for its TracPhone VSAT systems deployed across commercial and recreational fleets. Targetoo has these networks mapped and can target audiences connected through them as inventory availability develops.
Who is actually on these networks?
The maritime audience is more commercially valuable than many advertisers assume. Cruise passengers in particular skew toward higher-income demographics, often travelling during leisure time with high purchase intent around fashion, experiences, travel accessories, and premium goods. Cargo ship crews represent a distinct and loyal audience, often with long uninterrupted hours of connectivity time during voyages. Offshore platform workers, superyacht guests, and ferry passengers each add further depth to what is, in aggregate, a sizeable and underserved audience.
Targetoo has built real experience reaching people across all of these contexts — from cruise lines in the Caribbean to container ships on transoceanic routes.
Why the timing is right
Satellite internet at sea was, until recently, expensive and slow enough that engagement was limited. That's no longer the case. Starlink and newer VSAT deployments have dramatically improved the on-board internet experience, and usage patterns on vessels now closely mirror what people do on land. The audience is engaged. The inventory is real. Most advertisers just haven't built the infrastructure to reach it.
Targetoo has. If your audience travels, works, or lives at sea — we can reach them there.