SES and Eutelsat in Ethiopia spat
Back on February 12th Eutelsat announced it had signed a multi-year contract with the Ethiopian Broadcasting Corp and the Association of Ethiopian Broadcasters for video capacity on its Eutelsat 8…
IDS Africa on AMOS-17
Tel Aviv-based Spacecom, operator of the AMOS satellite fleet, has confirmed that Nigeria-based IDS Africa is the newest broadcaster to sign up for broadcast services on the AMOS-17 satellite. The…
ITU rules causing problems for Indonesia
Indonesia holds certain orbital rights to the 113 degrees East slot, but it must occupy the position with a working satellite by August 2019. The International Telecommunications Union’s (ITU) rules…
Orion, Viacom satellite transfers
Two Viacom channels – Nickelodeon and Paramount Comedy – are being transferred to the Orion Group’s satellite platform. The operator will also provide technical servicing of the channels and ensure…
TRAI: Indian DTH subs up 4.9m in 1 year
India’s Telecom Regulatory Authority (TRAI) has reported that the country’s DTH operators have seen growth of an additional 4.91 million extra pay-TV subs in the year to March 31st 2019.…
SES winning Ethiopian business hits Eutelsat
A recent announcement from SES saying that they were establishing a dedicated DTH service for Ethiopian viewers also confirms that it has persuaded many channels to “migrate” from Eutelsat. An…
SES takes Ethiopian channels
SES is creating a dedicated DTH environment for Ethiopian channels. SES has struck agreements with private and public broadcasters, as well as the Association of Ethiopian Broadcasters (AEB), and the…
SES Astra app instructs satellite installation
In an unprecedented move, SES Astra has launched an app to teach users how to install a satellite dish. Available on iOS and Android the free app, called ASTRA Instalación…
Malaysia cracks down on “illegal satellite dishes”
The arrival of a 160-channel DTH service from neighbouring Laos has prompted Malaysia’s Communications & Multimedia Commission to say it will crack down on what it describes as “illegal satellite…
Italy’s Tivùsat reaches 3.5m active smart cards
Italian DTH platform Tivùsat is celebrating its 10th anniversary with 3.5 million active smart cards, accounting for a 13 per cent penetration rate. Managed by Tivù, a company owned by…
US ‘distant’ satellite signal licences under threat
The new head of the US Copyright Office, Register of Copyrights, Karyn Temple says that the permitted use of ‘distant’ TV network signals free of charge has outlived its usefulness…
SES renews €1.2bn credit line; starts Brazil DTH
SES has renewed its €1.2 billion line of credit in a 5-year agreement (extendable to 2026) with its existing lenders and at a lower rate of interest. SES has also…
Eutelsat, DirecTV launch success
An Arianespace rocket successfully placed two satellites into their geostationary transfer orbits on June 20th in the late afternoon from the Kourou launch site in French Guiana. DirecTV’s T-16 craft…
Fransat: 2m users at 10 y.o.
Following its launch in 2009 by Eutelsat to allow viewers living in areas not covered by IPTV or DTT to receive free DTH programming, digital satellite service Fransat has attracted…
Sersat, SES boost for LatAm content delivery
Pay-TV operators, content owners and broadcasters will now be able to deliver their video content on a newly-developed platform on the SES-14 satellite to reach more than 33 million TV…