Advanced Television

Inside Satellite

Chris Forrester

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.

Bank: Ukraine war impact on media

A report from investment analysts at Berenberg Bank looks at the sectorial impact, and in particular on media, and says that while there are some broadcasters have business interests in Russia, but their exposure (to specific losses) are modest. The bank says its own portfolio coverage has very limited exposure to Russia and Ukraine, noting: […]

March 11, 2022

Bank rates SES ‘Buy’, Eutelsat ‘Hold’

A report from investment analysts at Berenberg Bank looks closely at satellite operator SES, and maintains a ‘Buy’ rating although the bank softens its Price Target on the operator’s shares, and lowers its target slightly from €10 to €9.80 (today at €6.92). The bank’s report says that over the next two years SES has three […]

March 9, 2022

Space organisation bans all Russian activities

The IISL (the International Institute of Space Law) has “suspended” the participation of Russia and which includes Russian students participating in the IISL’s activities. The IISL said it regrets having to make this decision because it affects civil society and students in particular and means that students must pay the price for geopolitical struggles far […]

March 8, 2022

SES vs Intelsat: Tolley statements filed

Lawyers for SES filed an additional motion into the court hearing its lawsuit against Intelsat over the 50/50 division of the FCC’s C-band $9.7 billion ‘incentive payments’. Intelsat’s former CFO David Tolley was deposed twice (on April 15th and October 18th) last year but was not called as a witness during the recent overall hearings […]

March 7, 2022

Bank upbeat for MFE-MediaForEurope

MFE-MediaForEurope, the new holding business formed by Mediaset under the Dutch registered umbrella company, has received a positive note from equity analysts at Berenberg Bank. MFE-MediaForEurope released a preliminary alert as to its expected financials (themselves due in full towards the end of April) and these, says the bank, appeared to be well ahead of […]

March 3, 2022

Bank: Eutelsat could switch off Russia transponders

Eutelsat executives say they have about 6 per cent of group revenues exposed to Russian activity. The bulk of this comes from distribution deals on Russian pay-TV systems operated by Tricolor and NTV+. A report from analysts at investment bank Exane/BNPP forecasts a scenario – unconfirmed by the company – where the French government requests […]

March 2, 2022

NENT rated ‘Buy’ by bank

Equity analysts at Berenberg Bank have updated their advice to clients on Nordic Entertainment Group (NENT). They first looked at the company in November 2020 when its shares were at SEK 375.6 (€35.12). They rose to SEK 530 in August last year. They are now at just SEK 316.5, and the bank is rating the […]

March 1, 2022

Russian invasion casts doubt over OneWeb launch

Russia’s space agency Roscosmos has suspended its cooperation agreement with Arianespace and is pulling out staff from the French launch site at Kourou in French Guiana. Roscosmos boss Dmitri Rogozin has tweeted confirming the action which he says is in retaliation over the trade sanctions imposed on Russia. The Russian Tweet said: “In response to […]

February 28, 2022

SES: C-band extra benefits examined

SES unveiled its end-of-year numbers on February 24th and in its post-results analysts call, CEO Steve Collar explained that the satellite operator was “well ahead” of its work to prepare for FCC-mandated C-band conversion work for the SES. Collar stated the C-band Phase 2 work meant SES was on track to receive the remaining $3bn […]

February 25, 2022

Intelsat emerges from Chapter 11

Intelsat has formally confirmed its emergence from Chapter 11 reconstruction. The satellite operator said it had emerged as a private company with a substantially strengthened capital structure to support its growth as the leader in satellite communications. This final milestone follows receipt of regulatory approvals, completion of certain corporate actions, and satisfaction of other customary […]

February 24, 2022