Eutelsat wins new contract from RecordTV
April 13, 2023
By Chris Forrester
RecordTV has signed a multi-year agreement for carriage with Eutelsat on its 65 WestA satellite. RecordTV is a Brazilian media company focused on the content production and its distribution in Brazil and internationally. RecordTV is one of the largest TV networks in Brazil.
The partnership enables RecordTV to migrate 15 HD channels to the Eutelsat 65 West A satellite seamlessly, avoiding interferences generated from the rollout of 5G currently underway in the country. Brazil is implementing 5G within the 3.5GHz band, which is currently used to support satellite TV services in the C-band. Eutelsat 65 West A’s planned C-band is a unique frequency range that is not affected by the 5G rollout. The decision was supported by an extensive analysis conducted by the technical team of RecordTV endorsing Eutelsat 65 West A planned C-band as free of potential 5G interference.
The migration of services took place under Eutelsat’s ‘Planned C-Band’ solution, developed to offer Brazilian broadcasters a simple procedure to adapt or replace equipment and repoint antennas to the orbital 65°W position. Planned C band is also named as C-band AP30B frequencies, with frequencies ranging from 4.5GHz to 4.8GHz, starting 800MHz above from 5G frequencies in Brazil. Eutelsat 65 West A thus enables a cost-efficient geographic expansion for broadcasters as filters do not require to be installed to avoid 5G interference.
Commenting on the contract, José Ignacio González-Núñez, Eutelsat Americas Video SVP, said: “We are delighted to welcome RecordTV to Eutelsat 65 West A. Our ‘Planned C-Band’ solution offers a seamless and cost-effective proposition for Brazilian broadcasters required to migrate their signals out of the lower end of the C-Band spectrum, while offering them unparalleled coverage of the Brazilian market. This choice made by RecordTV strengthens Eutelsat 65 West A’s video neighbourhood as well as Eutelsat Video services.”
Geraldo Marques, broadcast engineer of RecordTV, added: “As one of Brazil’s largest TV networks, RecordTV requires robust content distribution over satellite. With over a hundred of TV stations spread all over the Brazilian territory, we reach audiences nationwide, and we need to ensure a premium service for viewers demanding the highest quality of reception. We are pleasure to have Eutelsat as one of the main partners.”