Telesat will be dedicating a 16 Ku-band-transponder payload on the Anik G1 satellite to Canadian DTH proivder Shaw Direct, Telesat announced.
    “The deal is the result of Industry Canada‚s recent decision to make extended Ku-band available for direct-to-home television services, a decision that allows our companies to expand the delivery of advanced video services to all Canadians and enhances competition in Canada,” Telesat CEO Dan Goldberg said in a statement.
    Anik G1 will be located at 107.3 degrees West and will carry other payloads, Telesat said. The satellite operator expects to announce the manufacturer of Anik G1 “in the next two to three months” and the satellite is scheduled to enter service in the second half of 2012.
    Financial details of the contract with Shaw Direct were not disclosed.