Astra satellite dishes. Photo: SES

[Via Satellite 11-18-2015] SES subsidiary SES Techcom Services is expanding its Astra Connect broadband service in Africa via the Newtec Dialog multiservice platform. Newtec is supplying the new platform, which is due for launch in the first quarter of 2016. SES Techcom Services will employ the platform to leverage the West Africa Ku-band beam of the Astra 2G satellite, located at 28.2 degrees east.

SES Techcom Services expects the platform will broaden its current portfolio and flexibly support different services for customers ranging from small offices, home offices and Small to Medium Enterprise (SME) customers, or for enterprise and oil and gas customers. Newtec Dialog supports Multi-Frequency Time Division Multiple Access (MF-TDMA) and Single Channel Per Carrier (SCPC) technologies, as well as Newtec’s Mx-DMA technology, increasing bandwidth efficiency and service reliability for enterprise applications.

“There are millions in Africa who remain unconnected today and at SES we are eager to connect them via satellite broadband services,” said Gerhard Bethscheider, managing director at SES Techcom Services. “By using Newtec’s new platform, our broadband offerings are efficient and scalable, and can be offered cost-effectively to our customers.”