Around this time next year, Paris-based Eutelsat is due to orbit its powerful 6,000 kgs 25B satellite to the 25.5 degrees East position broadcasting to the Arab world. The trouble is that Saudi Arabian-based Arabsat already has a trio of satellite in the position (adjacent at 26 degrees East). Indeed, the Arabsat BADR-series are extremely […]

Eutelsat says while accidental/human error creates some 58 per cent of the interference suffered by satellite operators, a staggering 10 per cent is caused by either intentional (6 per cent) or so-called ‘pirate’ signal (4 per cent) problems. The intentional interference comes from either rogue states, or Earth Stations operating with no regard for the […]

It’s time for IP&TV World Forum once again and hybrid solutions will be to the fore. The hybrid nature of the sector is reflected in the name of the event, shifting subtly from IPTV to IP&TV, reflecting the fact IP is now part of the normal scenery of the TV landscape and not a feature […]

Salah Hamza, CEO at Cairo-based Nilesat, speaking at the Satellite 2012 event in Washington DC, said that the jamming of satellite signals is hurting the industry very badly. “We now even have what we call voluntary self-jamming, where in order to curb unwanted signals coming into a country it seems that a nation is prepared […]

Eutelsat and Qatari partner Es’HailSat have contracted with Arianespace to launch their joint project on an Ariane 5 rocket into orbit around the middle of next year. The only problem with the scheme is that the satellite is intended to go to 25.5 degrees East, and very close to Arabsat’s ‘hot spot’ at 26 degrees […]

Satellite operators and launch contractors save their big news for the giant Washington DC satellite show, and this year’s event is no different. Sea Launch, that only a year ago was exiting bankruptcy, said it had signed up a launch contract for Intelsat-27, due for launch early next year. Sea Launch will use its Zenith […]

UK broadcasting regulator Ofcom is ramping up its investigation into whether BSkyB is a “fit and proper person” to hold UK broadcasting licences. Ofcom says it set up a dedicated team in January (called Project Apple) to investigate material emerging from the Levenson inquiry into phone hacking and corruption at News International’s UK print titles. […]

Two days ago we were reporting that talks were progressing well on the sale of Malaysia-based Measat, and that Arabsat as well as Eutelsat (and others) were lining up to bid for the satellite assets. Measat handles around 400 TV and 160 radio channels as well as DTH platforms and beams its signals to more […]

Investment banker Morgan Stanley, in a note to clients, suggests that despite recent share price growth for German commercial broadcaster ProSiebenSat.1, the network still has plenty of upside momentum. This positive outlook is helped by Pro7/Sat1 increasingly robust view that German advertising is recovering for 2012. Forward TV ad-sales booking commitments are up 2 per […]

Whatever criticism might have been targeted against Rupert or James Murdoch over the whole News International/News of the World phone hacking scandal, nobody could suggest that BSkyB hasn’t played a wholly balanced and fair game as far as its major 39 per cent shareholder is concerned. Indeed, Sky News has been thorough and entirely open […]