Focus: Broadcasting

[Satellite Today 07-08-09] Viasat Broadcasting signed a deal with Swedish commercial broadcaster TV4 Group to add TV4 Play to Viasat OnDemand, the company announced July 7.     Viasat Broadcasting, which operates a number of direct-to-home platforms throughout the Nordic region, launched Viasat OnDemand as an online video streaming service in May 2007, providing a selection...

[Satellite Today 07-07-09] The Sirius XM Radio application for Apple’s iPhone and iPod Touch has been downloaded more than 2 million times within two weeks of its release, Sirius XM announced July 6.     The Sirius XM application lets users access 120 channels of talk radio, sports, entertainment and commercial-free music content. Since its release...

[Satellite Today 07-07-09] Nagravision, a subsidiary of Kudelski Group, signed a contract with Empresa Brasileira de Telecomunicações (Embratel) to supply conditional access system for Embratel’s direct-to-home (DTH) service, Via Embratel, Nagravision announced July 6.     Embratel, which uses MPEG-4 and DVB-S2 for its delivery system, said Nagravision was instrumental in the development and integration of...

[Satellite News 07-07-09] North American sports broadcaster, ESPN is intent on becoming more of a force on the international landscape, Russell Wolff, executive vice president and managing director of ESPN International, told Satellite Today.     ESPN’s acquisition of U.K. Premier League soccer rights in late June was a significant development for the company, said Wolff....

[Satellite News 07-07-09] ESPN is a household name for sports broadcasting in North America, but the company is intent on becoming more of a force on the international landscape, Russell Wolff, executive vice president and managing director of ESPN International, told Satellite News.     ESPN’s acquisition of U.K. Premier League soccer rights in late June...

[Satellite Today 07-06-09] The Indian direct-to-home (DTH) market will still see strong levels of growth despite the economic recession, according to a report by research company RNCOS, released July 6.     The DTH industry will add about 500,000 subscribers a month in 2009, according to “Indian DTH Market Forecast to 2012.” The study also forecasts...

[Satellite Today 07-06-09] U.K. based set-top box supplier Pace said it will meet its management expectations for the first half of 2009, according to a company-issued trading update released July 6.     “Pace has continued to capitalize on its excellent position in the growing global market for digital TV technology,” Neil Gaydon, CEO of Pace,...

[Satellite Today 07-03-09] A U.S. Federal Court of Appeals granted EchoStar Corp.’s request to stay a contempt order imposed by the U.S. District Court in June, pending the outcome of EchoStar’s appeal, EchoStar announced July 2.  The contempt ruling stems from a 2006 judgement favoring TiVo in an infringement lawsuit against Dish Network. As a...

[Satellite Today 07-03-09] Asia Broadcast Satellite (ABS) is acquiring the Koreasat-2 satellite from Korea Telecom, ABS announced July 2.  As a result of the transaction, Koreasat-2, built by Lockheed Martin and launched in January 1996, will be renamed as ABS-1A. The spacecraft has a Ku-band payload with 16 Ku-band transponders dedicated to fixed satellite services...

[Satellite Today 07-02-09] International Launch Services (ILS) carried Sirius XM Radio’s FM-5 satellite into orbit on an ILS Proton, ILS announced June 30.     Sirius FM-5 launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome at 3:10 p.m. EDT. After a 9-hour, 14-minute operation, Sirius FM-5 satellite was released into geostationary transfer orbit.     The satellite is performing post-launch...