Focus: Broadcasting

[Satellite TODAY 12-31-09] Space Systems/Loral (SS/L) has been contracted to build the Nimiq 6 satellite for Telesat, SS/L announced Dec. 30. The Ku-band satellite will be based on SS/L’s 1300 spacecraft bus.     Nimiq 6 is fully leased to Bell TV and will aim to provide Direct-to-Home HDTV and advanced video services in Canada from...

[Satellite TODAY 12-31-09] Irdeto has linked-up with Humax to develop a secure HD set-top box for the Middle East region, the two companies announced Dec. 29.       The set-top box, which will be manufactured by Humax, will feature Irdeto’s Conditional Access System (CAS) offering a hardware platform, software technology and cryptography, secure chipset, and SIM...

[Satellite TODAY 12-30-09] CBS and Walt Disney are considering a deal with Apple to join forces in order to create an iTunes subscription-based service for online video, The Wall Street Journal reported Dec. 22.     The move aims to challenge broadcast and satellite TV providers that also provide data services.         In a December...

[Satellite TODAY 12-30-09] Although the number of households with antennas in the U.S. fell slightly in the last year, about 11 percent of U.S. households, or about 13 million homes, watch over-the-air broadcasts through antennas, according to a Nielsen Co. report released Dec. 24     Nielsen said that there is a concentration of TV antenna...

[Satellite TODAY 12-30-09] International Launch Services (ILS) successfully launched the DirecTV-12 satellite aboard a Proton Breeze M rocket from the Khrunichev Research and Production Center in Baikonur, ILS announced Dec. 29.     The satellite, built by Boeing based on its 702 platform, aims to expand the U.S. pay-TV provider’s HD capacity in order to offer...

[Satellite TODAY 12-24-09] The European Satellite Operators’ Association (ESOA) expressed approval of the European Union’s (EU) Telecoms Reform Package in a statement released Dec. 23.     The package, proposed by EU Telecoms Commissioner Viviane Reding in 2007, passed in November and become law Dec. 18.     Romain Bausch, chairman of ESOA and CEO of SES,...

[Satellite TODAY 12-24-09] ViaSat named Tom Moore president of its newly acquired WildBlue subsidiary, ViaSat announced Dec. 23.     His duties at Wildblue will include oversight of the construction and launch of the ViaSat-1 high-capacity satellite.     Moore co-founded WildBlue in 1998 and served as president and CEO until 2005, continuing as a director of...

[Satellite TODAY 12-22-09] ArabSat and NileSat have agreed to help the Turkish government launch an Arabic language television station as part of an initiative from Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan to improve Turkey’s relations with the Arab world, ArabSat and NileSat announced Dec. 21.     TRT, the state-owned Turkish broadcasting authority, will start broadcasting...

[Satellite TODAY 12-22-09] The MPEG Industry Forum (MPEGIF), an advocacy group for standards-based digital television technologies, has formed the 3DTV Working Group in order to launch a “3D over MPEG” campaign, MPEGIF announced Dec. 21.     The campaign aims to promote the widespread adoption and deployment of MPEG-related standards, including MPEG-4 AVC/H.264 video compression technology...

[Satellite TODAY 12-21-09] Eutelsat signed a capacity contract with Elettronica Industriale, the network operator of the Mediaset Group in Italy, Eutelsat announced Dec. 18.     Elettronica Industriale will lease capacity on the Atlantic Bird 3 satellite in order to secure channel distribution to digital terrestrial television (DTT) transmitters across Italy. Eutelsat’s Atlantic Bird 3 satellite...