SES Increases TV Coverage To 276 Million Worldwide

SES, one of the world's leading satellite operator, announced yesterday that the company has further increased its reach as it now reaches 276 million TV homes worldwide over 17 million homes more than 2011. This, according to the company, was due to the strong gains of the company in places like India and Germany.

With a year-on-year gain of 7.5 million TV homes, India became the most important growth driver of the increase. Dish TV and Airtel Digital TV, now reach 25 million Indian TV homes with SES satellites. Germany, on the other hand, also contributed significantly to the coverage growth. The switch-off of analogue satellite signals and the success of the platform HD+ have contributed to a further growth of the satellite reach by more than 500,000 to over 18 million homes in 2012.

Senior Vice President Commercial Europe at SES, Norbert Hoelzle said, "The further extension of our reach is the result of our significant fleet investments and the successful development of leading DTH platforms, especially in emerging markets. More and more households acknowledge the significant advantages of satellite reception and the excellent channel line-up in numerous markets. SES has succeeded in generating growth not only in very dynamic emerging markets but also in highly developed markets like Germany. The further deployment of our fleet and continuous investments into new technologies like HD, Ultra HD and SAT>IP confirm our strategy to be the partner of choice for free-to-air and pay-TV broadcasters as a technical enabler. SES is also the infrastructure of choice for millions of consumers and TV viewers."


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ETL Systems To Launch V-Series RF Matrix

Even though there were news that says that ETL has expanded with the launch of its North American headquarters in Washington DC to cope with a surge in demand, ETL Systems will still launch its latest V-Series RF Matrix.

Last March 6, 2013, ETL System launched its new U.S. office at Washington DC in order to support the two-thirds of sales which comes from U.S.-based customers. ETL Systems, one of the leading designer of satellite equipment, appointed Susan Saadat, former Intelsat and Harris Caprock satcom specialist, as the new Vice-President to lead the office.



ETL System's Managing Director and CEO, Ian Hilditch, said "With this expansion we aim to grow our presence in North America by providing faster sales support and making more face to face visits possible, alongside extra on-the-ground hardware and software technical support. We pride ourselves on providing the best quality products, aftercare and customer support in the industry - the US office will enable us to extend capacity in a very important region for us."

Launching its new V-Series, designed and built at ETL’s base in the U.K., includes the 128x128 Vulcan Matrix Router, the 64x64 Vortex Matrix Router, the new 16x32 Valiant Matrix and the 16x16 Victor Matrix. All are capable of remote control via serial or Ethernet port with a SNMP and web browser interface.

ETL’s dual redundant amplifier unit, which is typically used in the front end of the RF chain, providing cable loss for teleports, TVRO and head-ends, is also on display. This amplifier unit contains dual redundant hot-swap L-band variable gain amplifier modules and is housed in a compact 1U high 19” rack mountable shelf. It operates over the 850-2150MHz frequency range, with up to 36dB gain and up to 8dB positive slope compensation.


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Sprint Debuts 4G LTE To Nine New Markets

In a news release, Sprint Nextel announced that the company is launching its 4G LTE in nine new markets. These new markets include Altoona (Pennsylvania), Asheville (North Carolina), Columbus (Indiana), Elkhart/Goshen (Indiana), Hammond (Louisiana), La Crosse (Wisconsin), San Juan (Puerto Rico), Statesville (North Carolina) and Temple (Texas).

Senior Vice-President, Sprint, Bob Azzi said, “With today’s announcement, Sprint is enabling even more customers to sample the power of 4G LTE on their smartphones, tablets and wireless hotspots. The network team continues to build and test the new network across the country, including areas like San Francisco, Los Angeles and New York. Customers report they are already finding a 4G LTE signal in these places, and we look forward to providing even more reliable access to the data they need with our official launches.”

Also stated in the said news release are the benefits or improvements customers can expect once the 3G upgrades and 4G LTE service come to the aforementioned areas;

• Faster data speeds to enable instant Web access for news updates, HD viewing and game-playing, quicker video downloads and clearer video chats.
• Better signal strength when accessing the Web.
• Fewer dropped calls for peace of mind when talking to friends, family or colleagues.

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Orbital Sciences’ Antares rocket passes Hot Fire test

Satellite-manufacturing company Orbital Sciences has a good reason to celebrate as the company’s Antares medium-class rocket passed the extended-duration “hot fire” test of its first stage propulsion system. The company is also planning to use the spacecraft to send cargo supply missions to the International Space Station (ISS) as part of a $1.9 billion agreement with NASA.

The key engine test, which was done at the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport’s (MARS) Pad 0A on February 22nd, lasted for 29 seconds. The pad is specifically designed and built for liquid-fuel space launch rockets. The test is essential to guarantee that the stage one test article of the Antares rocket and the launch complex’s fueling systems functions properly in a fully operational environment. The “hot fire” test also proved that the engine ignition and shutdown commands function as intended, and that the dual AJ26 first stage engines as well as their control systems operate to specifications in the twin-engine configuration.

Orbital Sciences reports that the company will now exert its efforts into the first flight of the Antares spacecraft following its successful test. The inaugural flight is expected to transpire in approximately six weeks.

Under the contract with NASA, Orbital will launch eight cargo resupply missions to the ISS from NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility in eastern Virginia using the Antares vehicle. The company is also examining the possibility of a west coast launch site to extend the market of A.

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Wireless Matrix, LightSquared extend satellite service deal

Wireless Matrix reported that it has extended its satellite communications service agreement with LightSquared to last through mid-February 2016.

LightSquared provides wholesale mobile satellite data, voice, and bandwidth leasing services. Its agreement with Wireless matrix will leverage the SkyTerra-1 satellite. SkyTerra-1 is one of the most powerful and reliable next-generation commercial satellites, with a footprint that covers North America.

Wireless Matrix will use the renewed agreement to ensure service continuity for its customers, especially those who use satellite services as an integral part of their business. It also sets up the development of the next-generation of satellite services that the Company will later offer.

Wireless provides satellite communications services for critical business applications and GPS fleet management solutions. It ensures mission-critical locomotive communications for railroad operators, connects energy companies with mobile workers to manage outages and other unscheduled tasks, and allows those same energy companies to constantly monitor the status of their fixed-site asset operations in remote locations.

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ADSB, YahSat enter satellite systems deal for project Baynunah

Al Yah Satellite Communications Company (YahSat) and Abu Dhabi Ship Building (ADSB) have won a deal to install satellite communications systems to the whole fleet of UAE navy Baynunah class corvettes.

Under the agreement, YahSat and communications company Rohde & Schwarz will provide the equipment that prime contractor ADSB will install to the fleet. Maenwhile, CMN and SELEX will be in charge of any additional project technical support.

ADSB will take care of modifying the vessel and installing the satellite communication systems equipment. At the moment, the company is spearheading the region’s biggest naval shipbuilding program to build six Baynunah Class Corvettes for the United Arab Emirates Navy. As part of ADSB’s on-going business expansion program, it has added a new modern composite facility.

In a statement, ADSB CEO Ian Pike said: “ We are delighted to expand our work for the UAE Navy in relation to the fleet of Baynunah Class corvettes. This contract demonstrates synergies that exist between the defense-related companies in the wider Mubadala group of companies and the mutual benefits they create for our customers.”

YahSat supplies multipurpose satellite solutions for commercial and government purposes for broadband, broadcast, military and communications use in the Middle East, Africa, Central and South West Asia.

"Network security and uninterrupted service are constant concerns for maritime customers - our solution is designed to provide connectivity and real-time data to meet their needs,” Tareq Al Hosani, YahSat CEO Tareq Al Hosani said. “We look forward to working closely with our partners at ADSB to provide the UAE Navy with a truly complementary service."

Verizon's New 3G Market Opportunities

With United States' largest mobile network operator, Verizon Wireless, moving its customers to their Long Term Evolution (LTE) network, their 3G airwaves will perhaps soon be left unoccupied and obsolete.

Fortunately, Verizon found a way of making this 3G airwaves useful by launching two new prepaid phone plans last Friday, February 1, 2013. These said plans include unlimited voice minutes and messaging. With the limitation that these plans run only on 3G phones (10 times slower than LTE devices), they offer 500 MB of mobile data for $60, and another $10 to boost the broadband bucket to 2GB per month. The plans do not involve a contract.

The plans highlight its budget-friendly pricing. "So, when it comes time to think about the important task of keeping in touch with friends and family, taking time to investigate wallet-friendly options can mean a few extra dollars for weekend fun or paying down those holiday bills," said Verizon in a post in their website.

"With an affordable prepaid plan, and some creativity, you can stay in touch with friends and family and save a few dollars along the way."

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