On February 14, Rome-based Sitcom SpA launched its latest thematic satellite offering – a channel dedicated to motorsport fans. Although Nuvolari will initially transmit 18 hours a day only in Italian, from this summer it will also add French and German subcarriers and expand to a full 24-hour schedule. According to Sitcom CEO Valter La Tona, the new channel is being broadcast from Luxembourg, due to the lack of legislation in Italy regulating the satellite TV sector (see Interspace 684).

The new channel will be supported by Nuvolari Net, which according to marketing director Roberto Maldacea, will be the most complete Web site in the world dedicated to motor sports. Although the channel is currently available free-to-air via the Eutelsat Hot Bird satellite system, it plans to become a pay-TV service in the near future. Nuvolari will be produced by AGM, a Milan-based company specialised in the motor sports sector, which last month become a Sitcom shareholder. Nuvolari will join Sitcom’s lifestyle channel Alice, which is already broadcasting via Astra, while Leonardo, dedicated to style, culture and design, should see the light of day before summer.

• Abu Dhabi-based Al Thuraya Satellite Communications Corp is scheduled to launch its telecom satellite on May 11, becoming operational September 11, according to Mohammed Hassan Al Omran, chairman of the corporation. In a local interview Omran said work on the project was moving ahead according to schedule. He said that by the end of 2001 the subscriber base is expected to touch 460,000.