Chris Forrester is one of the most experienced and highly regarded journalists in the field. His insight and analysis, particularly in the satellite and pay-TV arena, is highly prized. He has written for all the major business journals in the sector as well as several national newspapers.
SES-backed O3b Networks is getting ready to launch its second batch of 4 satellites during Thursday evening (at 20.55 Paris time). The launch, on an Arianspace Soyuz ST-B rocket from French Guiana, means that O3b can offer a truly global broadband-by-satellite service to “the other 3 billion” of the planet’s inhabitants who are under-served or […]
Earlier this year, fast-expanding Paris-based satellite operator Eutelsat won an auction for an orbital position controlled by Brazil (at 69.45 degrees West. SES of Luxembourg and Madrid-based Hispasat also successfully bid for frequencies at the location, and a combined $67.6 million was paid to Brazil’s Anatel regulator. But Eutelsat’s bid immediately ran into problems in […]
London-based Inmarsat has a major customer in the shape of US-based Lightsquared. On July 2nd Inmasat confirmed what the market had suspected, that Ligtsquared was missing paying its quarterly bills. Virginia-based Lightsquared has a long-standing ‘Cooperation Agreement’ with Inmarsat. Lighsquared, founded by hedge fund player Phil Falcone, is developing a 4G-Satellite broadband communications network. It […]
Bloomberg’s Businessweek is reporting that the USA’s two giant DBS pay-TV operators DirecTV and Dish Network did hold merger discussions as recently as six days prior to the AT&T deal being announced. DirecTV has confirmed that it did hold talks “with a competitor” without naming the rival. The revelation emerged in documents filed with the […]
Last week’s US Supreme Court ruling that Aereo must cease retransmitting over-the-air content, might now have a deep impact on other players. Fox Broadcasting almost immediately filed a fresh motion with the 9th Circuit Court which is hearing its appeal against an infringement decision made by the court in favour of Dish Network’s ‘Hopper’ place-shifting […]
Martin Halliwell, CTO at satellite operator SES, has issued a blunt warning to Europe’s space agencies, especially the French, that planned redesigns of the giant Ariane rocket launcher are not ambitious enough. Airbus Defence & Space and rocket-engine builder Safran has just created a joint-venture to build an Ariane-6 rocket, and in the process scrap […]
The launch industry is in a very deep mess. The past few days have seen SpaceX cancel three planned launches for satellite operator Orbcomm. The best the rocket company can do is to launch the first week of July, says the company. But this delay has severely impacted AsiaSat of Hong Kong. They have two […]
For the past week or so, Advanced-Television has been cataloguing the numerous delays affecting the rocket launch sector, and the growing number of satellite operators facing serious delays to their launch – and business – plans. Now SpaceX, backed by billionaire Elon Musk, having been forced to delay the planned launch of six Orbcomm satellite […]
Charlie Ergen, the main shareholder (along with his wife) in both EchoStar and DBS broadcaster Dish Network, has been busy buying up broadcast transmission and spectrum rights for the past few years. Indeed, while he – and rival DirecTV – spoke openly about their joint ‘need to merge’ their TV operations, we now know that […]
US satellite broadband supplier ViaSat is seeking a Court-imposed injunction to stop Space Systems/Loral (SS/L) building at least one satellite. ViaSat alleges that SS/L is continuing to violate patents that it holds. ViaSat has already been awarded $283 million in damages and compensation following on from a jury trial against SS/L. Loral Space & Communications, […]
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