Focus: Telecom

[Satellite Today 07-24-08] Harmonic Inc. will provide Astra Platform Services with high-definition (HD) encoders and statistical multiplexing for a network upgrade, Harmonic announced July 24.     Astra will install Harmonic’s DiviCom Electra 7000 encoders and DiviTrackIP statistical multiplexing to enhanced and expand Astra’s HD MPEG-4 AVC service. Astra transmits more than 200 television and audio...

[Satellite Today 07-24-08] Integral Systems Inc. reported total revenue of $41.8 million in its 2008 third quarter, up 17 percent from the same period a year ago, Integral announced July 23.     Net income improved from $3.8 million in the 2007 third quarter to $4.7 million in the most recent three months. Integral credited the...

[Satellite News 07-23-08] Paul Lithgow was appointed COO of AeroAstro, a business unit of Radyne, in June.     Lithgow will oversee current programs and new business development for AeroAstro, which is celebrating 20 years of operations, and has been expanding its business with the U.S. military. Lithgow also will serve as the primary interface between...

[Satellite News – 07-23-08] Swiss defence company Ruag has been part of the space landscape in Europe for around 30 years, but is looking to play a larger role in the space sector with its acquisition of Saab Space, a supplier of space equipment with sites in Sweden and Austria.   “We are strengthening our position...

[Satellite News 07-23-08] BSkyB signed an innovative deal with one of the world’s biggest music companies to offer digital music services, BSkyB said July 23.     The satellite pay-TV operator announced a partnership with Universal Music to launch a service which will offer customers the opportunity to access music, as BSkyB continues moving beyond its...

[Satellite News 07-23-08] Viasat, a Modern Times Group (MTG) subsidiary, has seen a decrease in direct-to-home (DTH) subscribers in the Nordic region in the second quarter, the company announced July 22. This continues a downward trend in DTH numbers in recent quarters.     At the end of June, the company had 770,000 subscribers, with close...

[Satellite News 07-23-08] Revenues in KVH’s mobile communications business improved 4 percent to $18.3 million in the company’s 2008 second quarter, the company announced July 22. The gains were driven by an increased demand for Internet access and satellite communications.     “Shipments of our TracPhone satellite communication systems, especially the TracPhone V7, were quite strong,"...

[Satellite Today 07-23-08] Hughes Network Systems LLC has increased the speeds of three of its HughesNet consumer service plans, the company announced July 23.     The Home plan now features download speeds of up to 1 megabit per second (Mbps), and the Pro and ProPlus plans feature download speeds of up to 1.2 Mbps and...

[Satellite News 07-23-08] SES New Skies signed another capacity deal for its NSS-7 satellite, the operator said July 23.     SM2 Sports Media Solutions, based in Greenwich, Conn., delivers sports events for broadcasters around the globe. The company has contracted 18 megahertz of bandwidth for five years on NSS-7 that will be used to deliver...

[Satellite News 07-22-08] For years, economists and politicians have racked the brains of think tanks to develop a solution to revive the lackluster industrial output of the Rust Belt, a cluster of cities along the Great Lakes that include former production giants like Cincinnati, Cleveland, Detroit and Pittsburgh.     Recent buzz from U.S. Federal Communications...