[Satellite TODAY 10-06-11] Satellite operator SES has secured an additional long-term contract with U.K. broadcaster Channel 4 to provide additional capacity on SES’ recently launched Astra 1N spacecraft, SES announced Oct. 5.

   Channel 4 already has three transponders under contract at SES’s 28.2 degrees East orbital slot. The broadcaster said it would use its new capacity on Astra 1N to transmit Channel 4 HD service along with further HD offerings during the next few years.

   “We have worked closely with Channel 4 for the past seven years. Our new agreement is further proof of the strong demand for new HD services in the U.K. market,” SES CCO Ferdinand Kayse said in a statement.

   To support additional business in the U.K. region, SES will bring three new satellites into service at 28.2 degrees East from 2012 to 2014 — Astra 2F, 2E and 2G.