Focus: Telecom

[Satellite Today 08-05-08] NDS has seen a strong increase in its overall revenues and operating profits for the year that closed June 30, the company announced Aug. 5.     NDS, which supplies conditional access and middleware solutions to satellite pay-TV operators, reported revenues of more than $850 million, an increase of around 20 percent compared...

[Satellite Today 08-05-08] Space Exploration Technologies (SpaceX) received a $20 million equity investment from Founders Fund, a San Francisco-based technology venture capital firm whose management team includes the co-founders of PayPal.     Elon Musk, SpaceX’s founder and financier, made his fortune when he and the co-founder sold PayPal to eBay in 2002 for $1.5 billion....

[Satellite News 08-04-08] On July 31, Eutelsat Communications issued its full year results for the year ending June, which once again saw the operator post solid revenue growth driven by strong performance in the video applications arena. Analysts remain bullish about the operator’s prospects and say that the latest results reflect the dynamic nature of...

[Satellite News 08-04-08] EMS Technologies, Inc. (EMS) announced that it is expanding its previously announced share repurchase program to include market acquisitions in brokered transactions. The expanded program also includes negotiated transactions over 10,000 shares each.      The company’s Board of Directors’ repurchase authorization remains subject to an overall limit of $20 million.

[Satellite News 08-04-08]  Integral Systems (Integral) today announced that it is leasing additional office space in Colorado Springs, CO, El Segundo, CA, and Chantilly, VA. The facilities will accommodate the satellite ground system company’s government business growth, the company said.     The new 15,000 square feet of office space, which located across the street from...

[Satellite News 08-04-08]  In its latest results, Dish Network had mixed fortunes with increases in revenues and profits, but a drop in the number of subscribers overall. Dish Network reported total second quarter revenue of $2.91 billion, a 5.6 percent increase compared with $2.76 billion for the corresponding period in 2007. However, the company also...

[Satellite News 08-04-08]  SES has seen a double-digit percentage increase in its net profits for the first half of this year. The operator reported net profits of 235.8 million euros ($367.11 million) for the six months to the end of June, a close to 14 percent increase compared to the same stage last year.    ...

In June, Kazakhstan’s National Space Agency, KazCosmos, announced that it had lost contact with the nation’s first communications satellite, Kazsat 1. News coverage of this event to date has been minimal at best. Built by Moscow-based Khrunichev Space Center and launched in mid-2006, the 850-kilogram Ku-band satellite carried an estimated price tag of $65 million...

Some interesting parallels exist in the evolution of the computer and satellite industries. Both initially were dominated by big metal, with mainframes housing the financial records of large corporations and large satellites ruling the sky. But mainframes lost their grip as they proved difficult to program for advanced applications or simply were too expensive for...

The 1999 U.S. International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) authorizes the president to control the export and import of defense-related articles and services such as software, integrated circuits, computers, electronics and security-related information systems that can be vital for satellites and launch vehicle technologies. U.S. manufacturers also have internal ITAR compliance programs. But has increased...