Photo: SES

Benin’s government signed a contract with SES to receive 15 new Free-to-Air (FTA) channels from satellite. As part of the agreement, a number of High Definition (HD) channels will be broadcast over Benin, making it the first HD channels to be available over Digital Terrestrial Television (DTT) service across Africa. This marks an important step forward in the digital switchover for the country, which intends to switch off analogue service in 2020.

SES will be utilizing spot-beam capacity on SES-14. This satellite with a high throughput payload will deliver video feeds to the DTT infrastructure across Benin, with Direct-to-Home (DTH) service filling in any gaps of DTT coverage. SES-14 was launched in January 2018 and is located at 47.5 degrees West.

“We are excited to be working with the committee leading the digital television transition of Benin to deliver such high-quality service to the people of Benin,” said SES Video President (VP) of Sales and Market Development for Africa Clint Brown. “Launching HD service can be complex, and we are dedicated to providing innovative solutions to respond to market needs. Launching this DTT and DTH service is an important step for Benin and we are in the best position to successfully deliver the complete set of services required.”