One of the disadvantages of wearing a press badge at a trade show is that you never get to sit in on the meetings that define success for a convention like NAB 2009.
By talking to vendors and noticing the wider aisles and empty spaces, one could assume that the economic crisis has made it difficult for the industry to live up to expectations.
In my analysis yesterday (featured on www.satellitetoday.tv), I pointed out the quieter, slower environment of the opening day. However, I was surprised to see the ammount of
contract announcements in my inbox the next morning.
   Hughes landed an impressive reseller agreement with Clear Channel and SES won a contract with Turner Broadcasting to distribute CNN to the EMEA region. Via Satellite
Editor Jason Bates spoke with CNN Vice President of Transmission Systems and New Technology, Dick Tauber, who said that the mission of a lot of executives at NAB 2009 is
to meet the increasing demand for content with less money. That interview will also be available on www.satellitetoday.tv.
The fact that capacity contracts are outnumbering the technology acquisitions at this point could very well signal  a thrifty buying environment and serves as good news for the satellite industry, whose solutions and service offerings revolve around cost-cutting.