Connectivity

Asia Broadcast Satellite (ABS) is one of the most talked about operators on the planet, and has been on an aggressive growth curve. The company sees Africa as an important part of the equation as it looks to diversify its revenue base. In April this year, ABS appointed Felix Damiba, as its new managing director for Africa.

Global satellite operator Telesat has announced that Axesat, a provider of VSAT services in South America, has signed a long-term contract for capacity on Telesat’s new Anik G1 satellite.

DISH has updated its recently released set-top application, which now delivers on-screen social content relevant to the show or channel a viewer is watching.

Within five years, North America is expected to lose its status as the number one region for in-flight entertainment (IFE) content to the rapidly expanding Asia-Pacific region.

Singapore Telecommunications (SingTel), one of Southeast Asia’s largest telecom companies, has started the sale of Optus Satellite, its Australian satellite unit, seeking more than AU$2 billion ($1.9 billion). SingTel Seeks to Sell Optus Satellite for $2 Billion

International Launch Services (ILS) recently announced that communications satellite SES-6 will be launched on June 3, 2013 at 5:18 p.m. EDT from Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan.

ITT Exelis, a global aerospace, defense, information and technical services company, will make its Jagwire solution for the management and dissemination of tactical imagery and video available on a mobile platform.

International Datacasting Corporation (IDC) has announced that its new President and CEO Doug Lowther has been appointed to the corporation’s board of directors.

Intel, the world’s largest semiconductor chipmaker, has signed an agreement with ST-Ericsson that extends Intel’s investment in positioning technology.

The government of Belarus has made it illegal to install satellite antennas on buildings around the country.

TrustComm, a provider of secure COMSATCOM solutions to government agencies, has announced significant enhancements to its satellite emergency operations network (SEON) solution for emergency responders. The enhancements include new and flexible purchase options, and expanded network configurations.

Thuraya Telecommunications has become the newest member of the Space Data Association (SDA), a non-profit association that brings together international satellite operators to share critical data and best practices vital to the safety and integrity of the space environment and the radio frequency (RF) spectrum.

SAVIS Tegnologia has selected Advantech Wireless to provide a geographically redundant military satellite communication network system for SISFRON, the largest border security program in Latin America.

SES announced it has increased its household reach in the Benelux countries in 2012 to more than 1.2 million homes. With a 19 percent increase compared to the previous year, Belgium topped the Benelux growth in Astra satellite homes.

Boeing has received the first on-orbit signals from the fifth Wideband Global SATCOM satellite (WGS-5) it is delivering to the U.S. Air Force.

Airlines are set to spend $900 million on in-flight entertainment (IFE) content by 2018, up from $660 million in 2012, according to a newly released report from IMS Research.

By 2017, pay-TV households across the globe are expected to reach over one billion — a sharp increase over the 850 million projected before the end of 2013, said Michelle Abraham

Intelsat has announced that its subsidiary, Intelsat Jackson Holdings has received the requisite consent to amend terms of the indenture governing its 8.5 percent senior notes due in 2019, in connection with its previously announced consent solicitation.

Hermes Datacommunications and MEASAT Satellite have reached an agreement for the provision of VSAT satellite communication services across Malaysia’s offshore oilfields via the MEASAT-3 satellite.

ViaSat is adding two premium classes of Yonder high-speed Internet service for business aviation: Yonder Premium and Yonder VIP, which will provide higher data rates, new quality of service assurances, enhanced network operations and field engineering customer support.

Intelsat has announced that its subsidiary, Intelsat Jackson Holdingsplans to offer $2 billion aggregate principal amount of senior notes due in 2023.

As several industry leaders including Intelsat, Hughes and O3b Networks are in the process of launching new High Throughput Satellites (HTS), a specialized roundtable discussion on HTS began May 21 in Washington, D.C., with several panelists who indicated HTS might have far reaching implications for the global market place.

Hermes Datacommunications International, a provider of Wide Area Network communications to the upstream oil and gas industry, has won a significant contract to support Tullow Oil with their operations in Africa.

DISH has announced enhancements to its DISH Anywhere mobile app, including access to On Demand programming on Android (4.0 and higher) and Apple iOS (5.0 and higher) mobile devices.

Advantech Wireless has announced the release of the New Sapphire Series 2,500W Ku-Band UltraLinear GaN SSPA/BUC, modular design with built-in redundancy.

Satellite service provider atrexx Ltd. & Co. KG has added a new service platform to its product portfolio, specifically targeted at meeting the broadband demand in Libya and Afghanistan.

[Satellite TODAY 05-21-13] Cobham SATCOM’s Aviator 300 SwiftBroadband solution has received a European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) Supplemental Type Certificate (STC) for its use aboard a range of Cessna aircraft. […]

[Satellite TODAY 05-21-13] SES has signed a multi-year capacity deal with Telekom Srbija on the Astra 3B satellite owned by SES and positioned at 23.5 degrees east.       Telekom […]

[Satellite TODAY 05-21-13] Globalstar, a provider of mobile satellite voice and data services, has announced it has successfully completed and reached agreements to complete multi-part financings in connection with the […]

[Satellite TODAY 05-21-13] DISH Network is ready to take the next step as it bids to acquire U.S. wireless giant Sprint Nextel. Sprint announced May 20, that it had received […]