Warren-based Maritime Information Systems Inc. has just launched a system that enables customers to view the locations and specifications of AIS-equipped vessels via the Web, at www.misdevelopment.com. The system could be used to track vessels in distress or boats suspected of carrying threats to national security, such as bombs or terrorists.

Customers can pay a monthly fee of $50 to tap the network...[CEO Moses] Calouro said. “We’re not really sure of the entire market, but we are expecting 150 [subscribers] in the first year,” the CEO said. He projects that his company’s AIS service will generate $90,000 in revenue from subscriber fees in its first year. He plans to generate additional revenue, he said, by selling the company’s information to a London-based firm that wants to build a global network.

Calouro said any plans to expand his company’s network beyond New England will hinge on whether Congress chooses to require U.S. ports to track ships’ AIS signals.

Calouro began the company in 1995; it now employs three workers.