SES claims HDTV development lead
February 1, 2017
Satellite operator SES has released figures to reinforce its claim that it continues to lead HDTV development, representing the largest HD and Ultra HD platform.
In 2016, the number of HD channels on the SES fleet grew by 7 per cent to 2,495 channels. Today, 33 per cent of all the 7,538 channels on the SES fleet are in HD, with SES carrying 27 per cent of all HD channels globally. In addition, over 60 per cent of all channels on SES’s fleet are now broadcast in the MPEG-4 compression standard.
The on-going trend of the increasing HD TV penetration in Europe was the key driver of SES’s overall HDTV development, where the number of HDTV channels grew by 14 per cent to more than 750 channels. This performance was complemented by the growth in HDTV across the Americas.
SES is also continuing to maintain its strong momentum in the introduction of commercial agreements now secured for 21 UHD channels, compared with eight channels a year ago. Today, SES is broadcasting nearly 50 per cent of all the UHD channels carried over satellite globally.
In 2016, the acquisition of RR Media and the subsequent creation of MX1 through a merger with SES Platform Services supported SES’s market traction on new HDTV and UHD channels across Europe and North America, as well as the further expansion of SES’s Video business across fast-growing emerging markets.
The launch of SES-9 and the continued development of SES’s HD and UHD business were also significant factors supporting growth in Asian markets, where the company is applying its differentiated strategy. The launch of SES-10 and SES-15 later this year will deliver further growth potential for the Americas.
“With more TV channels than ever before, this confirms SES’s leading role as a TV broadcasting infrastructure and driver of global digitisation” said Ferdinand Kayser, Chief Commercial Officer of SES. “Through the growth of its channels portfolio and through major acquisitions in 2016, SES is exceptionally well placed to leverage major growth opportunities, especially in new and emerging markets. Our current launch programme is a dynamic engine for this future growth. With more and more channels being broadcast in HD and Ultra HD, 2017 and beyond will see continued growth and accelerated development for SES’s video segment.”