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.
ODM, the Johannesburg-based pay-TV broadcaster which trades as TopTV, is suffering financial problems. Luxembourg-based SES owns 20 per cent of the business. A rescue plan is being mounted by China’s StarTimes Group, itself backed by serious cash investments from China’s Africa Development Fund (ADF) and the China Development Bank. Up until late 2012 the Chinese […]
When the books were closed at the end of April 17, it was revealed that Intelsat’s Initial Public Offering was very poorly supported. Even though the price range set by the company was for shares to be bought in the $21-$25 range, the actual price achieved was a disappointing $18. Intelsat sold just 19.3 million […]
Modern Times Group (MTG) unveils its results on April 18th, and market sentiment suggests the numbers may not be good. A report to clients from investment bankers Morgan Stanley states that while pay-TV in the Nordic region – where MTG mainly operates – is “well anchored”, and helped by MTG’s margin guidance of a 10-12 […]
Time Warner is reportedly the front runner to buy Turkey’s ATV broadcasting unit from Calik Holdings. A final decision could emerge towards the end of this month. ATV is a nationwide network and has been owned by Calik since 2007, headquartered in Istanbul. It was launched in 1993 by the giant Sabah conglomerate. […]
Service isn’t due to start until October, but last week the press had its first chance to get up close and personal to the first batch of O3b (serving the ‘Other 3 billion’) satellites at the Thales Alenia satellite facility near Rome. The first four satellites are scheduled to be launched in June, with another […]
The past few months have been tough for International Launch Services (ILS) and its Russian –built Proton rocket. A launch failure, plus numerous delays and the CEO’s departure have not helped the system’s reputation. Last night that gloom was lifted when a Proton rocket successfully orbited Mexico’s Satmex 8 craft in a flawless launch. The […]
Egypt’s Administrative Court has defied the country’s government and issued an order that in effect lifts the rules on censorship previously in place and which had resulted in many channels being banned. The court explained in its detailed verdict that censorship is not within the jurisdiction of the Media Minister or others, pointing out that […]
Boeing’s giant space division says that its new 702SP satellite, which uses sophisticated all-electric propulsion, is capturing significant interest from the world’s satellite operators. Exactly a year ago, it surprised the market with news that it had secured a four-satellite order for the 702SP model from Asia Broadcast Satellite and Mexico’s SatMex. At the Satellite […]
International Launch Services (ILS), which is the US-based marketing arm of the Baikonur, Kazakhstan rocket launching operation, has been forced to cut prices to its customers following worries over insurance costs. The news emerged at the Satellite 2013 conference in Washington, where ILS’ recently appointed president and CEO Phillip Slack said that the three Proton […]
There could be a major restructuring of cable carriage fees in store. The Wall Street Journal is reporting that Verizon is already in discussions with some channel owners about adjusting their fees to more accurately reflect viewing audiences to its FiOS digital service. The argument is that some channels, and the WSJ specifically lists the […]
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FCC restores net neutrality
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