Latest News
Organized by date-
1. Eutelsat, ViaSat Expand Broadband Plans – Jan. 15.
Eutelsat’s satellite broadband plans have gained momentum last week, as the company announced plans to procure a dedicated Ka-band satellite in conjunction with ViaSat Inc., which is also ordering a Ka-band spacecraft.
EADS Astrium will manufacture Ka-Sat, the first all-Ka-band satellite for Eutelsat, the satellite operator announced Jan. 8. The spacecraft is scheduled to be placed into orbit in the 2010 third quarter to provide consumer broadband services across Europe and the Mediterranean basin. The procurement of the satellite and associated ground system is part of the investment objective Eutelsat laid out in October. Space Systems/Loral (SS/L) will build ViaSat-1 for ViaSat. The spacecraft, intended to serve the North American market, is planned for launch in 2011. Click to Read
2. White House Releases Export Control Directives – Jan. 23.
U.S. President George W. Bush signed a package of directives to reform U.S. defense trade policies and practices, the White House announced Jan. 22.
According to a fact sheet released by the U.S. Department of State, “the package of reforms required under this directive will improve the manner in which the U.S. Department of State licenses the export of defense equipment, services and technical data, enabling the U.S. government to respond more expeditiously to the military equipment needs of our friends, allies and particularly our coalition partners.” Click to Read
3. Industry CFOs See Continued Need For Financial Discipline – Feb. 27.
While many satellite industry CFOs understandably highlighted the strong fundamentals of the industry, not all are optimistic that investment conditions will improve any time soon.
“I think the optimism from the bankers (at this morning’s panel) was slightly misplaced,” Inmarsat CFO Rick Medlock said Monday during the “Future Financial Investments – Where Will the Money be Going Next?” session at SATELITE 2008. “I don’t think we are going to see any changes in the credit markets for two years. I think it is going to be tough to get things funded. I think there will be a shortage of liquidity.” Click to Read
4. Proton Failure May Have Impact On Launch, Pay-TV Markets – Mar. 17.
A Proton Breeze M rocket suffered its second failure in six months when a problem with the vehicle’s second stage left SES Americom’s AMC-14 short of its intended orbit March 15.
The satellite, which news reports claim is 8,000 kilometers short of its planned altitude of 36,000 kilometers, is in good shape, but correcting the orbit could affect the lifetime of the spacecraft, which has been leased by Echostar Corp. to provide pay-TV services for the next 10 years. Click to Read
5. SSTL Acquisitions Gives Astrium Complete Product Range – Apr. 8.
In a major piece of consolidation in the European satellite industry, EADS Astrium has reached an agreement to acquire small satellite manufacturer Surrey Satellite Technology Limited (SSTL) from the University of Surrey, the two companies announced April 7.
The deal is a significant for Astrium, as the company will now be able to offer customers a more complete range of solutions.
Colin Paynter, CEO of Astrium in the United Kingdom, discussed the reasons behind the deal with Satellite News Associate Editor Mark Holmes. Click to Read
6. Canadian Government Rejects ATK-MDA Deal – Apr. 10.
The Canadian government has rejected the sale of MacDonald Dettwiler and Associates Ltd. (MDA)’s satellite business to Alliant Techsystems Inc. (ATK), Canadian Industry Minister Jim Prentice said in an April 10 e-mail to the companies.
“As Minister responsible for the Investment Canada Act, I am writing to advise you that, on the basis of the information contained in your application and other information I have about your investment, I am not satisfied that your investment is likely to be of net benefit to Canada,” the e-mail read. Click to Read
7. Comtech To Acquire Radyne – May 13.
Comtech Telecommunications Corp. will acquire Radyne Corp. in a deal that will allow Comtech to improve its leadership position in the ground station and amplifier markets, Fred Kornberg, CEO and president of Comtech, said in a teleconference May 12.
“While we face competition in each of our markets, the transaction enhances our leadership position in the satellite earth station market and broadens our product offerings,” Kornberg said. “Our satellite earth station product line revenue growth will continue to be fueled by Comtech’s flagship carrier-in-carrier products. In addition, we expect Radyne’s SkyWire product line to generate incremental growth as it addresses a segment of the market that we do not address today.” Click to Read
8. Rival CEOs Give Reaction to Khrunichev/ILS Deal – Jun. 2.
Rival CEOs of launch service providers have not been surprised by Khrunichev State Research and Production Space Center’s swoop for a majority interest in International Launch Services (ILS), which the two companies announced May 29.
Khrunichev acquired the shares of ILS owned by majority shareholder Space Transport Inc., which acquired Lockheed Martin’s interests in the launch provider in October 2006. ILS will remain a U.S. company and will continue as the marketing arm for commercial launches of the Proton launch vehicle built by Khrunichev as well as the Angara vehicle under development. Click to Read
9. Analysts Question Harbinger’s Intentions With Inmarsat – Jul. 8.
Inmarsat has held preliminary discussions with U.S. investment company Harbinger Capital Partners, Inmarsat’s largest shareholder, which could lead to Harbinger taking over the satellite operator.
Harbinger initially acquired a 10.2 percent stake in Inmarsat in October and now holds a 28.2 percent stake in the operator. With Harbinger also holding stakes in SkyTerra Communications Inc., the parent company of Mobile Satellite Ventures (MSV), and TerreStar Corp., a pair of companies developing mobile satellite business that also will rely on ancillary terrestrial component (ATC) technology, the question is what is Harbinger’s strategy in the mobile satellite services arena? Click to Read
10. Satellite’s Role in Bringing Broadband to the United States (Parts 1-3) – Jul. 31.
In these difficult economic times, U.S. federal and state governments are looking for alternatives to cut costs of living for citizens. While the concept of upgraded infrastructure has long meant building more bridges and roads, political parties are focusing on a new area — broadband and communications infrastructure.
Technology, it seems, is being explored as the solution that will allow the country to grow out of its current economic slump. What role will the satellite industry play in the building process? What technology and hardware will be necessary to achieve these goals? Click to Read
11. EU Boost But Questions Marks Remain over Mobile Broadcasting – Aug. 11.
The European Commission (EC) unveiled Aug. 7 the selection procedure for operators seeking a license to provide pan-European mobile satellite services. Satellite operators will for the first time be able to offer services such as high-speed data, mobile TV, disaster relief and remote medical services under a single European selection procedure instead of under 27 different national systems.
The new procedure could allow companies to offer innovative wireless services throughout Europe over a specifically reserved spectrum as early as 2009. Click to Read
12. Stratos CEO Sees Potential in JSAT Joint Venture – Aug. 26.
Stratos Global executives returned from a trip to Japan with a new joint venture, JSAT Mobile Communications, in hand. The entity, developed partnership with JSAT, is set to bring Stratos’ localized broadband services to the Japanese mobile satellite market, a region with a difficult licensing processes.
“This is an extremely exciting time for the mobile satellite industry,” Stratos CEO Jim Parm said. “The new and much-needed high speed data services are now coming to Japanese market.”
Parm spoke with Satellite News news editor Jeffrey Hill about how and why the Canadian-based mobile satellite service (MSS) provider is targeting the Japanese market. Click to Read
13. Gilat CEO Taken Aback by Merger Issue – Sept. 4.
The termination of the merger agreement between Gilat Satellite Networks and a private equity consortium could “get somewhat ugly,” CEO Amiram Levinberg said. Gilat announced Aug. 29 that it was terminating the agreement and will seek a termination fee of more than $47 million, which equates to 10 percent of the value of the deal.
“It is disappointing, more than frustrating, after this type of an effort that this is the result,” Levinberg told Satellite News.“The deal has been terminated. The remedies and the agreed upon penalty that we think the investors owe the company is a substantial amount of money. We have asked for the remedies, and we will see what the reaction of the investors will be. They have said the conditions of the deal have not been met, so they see the situation differently.” Click to Read
14. O3B CEO: Constellation Will Benefit Emerging Economies – Sept. 11
The O3B in O3B Network’s name stands for “the other three billion,” the target market for the company’s ambitious 16-satellite constellation.
O3B wants to connect three billion customers in developing markets with high-speed Internet through a trunking and backhaul pipeline while decreasing latency and improving quality — a project reportedly worth $650 million.
A financial pitch-in of 43 million euros from Internet giant Google Inc., along with funding from Liberty Global Inc. and HSBC Principal Investments, has pushed O3B’s low-Earth orbit satellite system project into the spotlight, and as CEO Greg Wyler puts it, “levels the playing field” for global communications infrastructure.
Wyler spoke with Satellite News News Editor Jeffrey Hill about the future of the O3B constellations and how he plans to compete in the satellite broadband market. Click to Read
15. VSAT Players Concerned by Lack of Capacity – Sept. 25.
With demands for broadband services increasing in many regions around the globe, VSAT players see opportunities in markets such as Pakistan, Brazil and Africa, according to attendees at the Comsys VSAT 2008 show in London Sept. 24.
Heinrich Nothnagel, general manager, MWEB/Afsat, Africa, a communications solutions provider, said while other technologies such as wireless and fiber are becoming more widely available, the business case for Internet services powered by satellite is still strong in Africa. “Wireless networks only become cost-effective when there is a high density of subscribers,” he said. “They are limited to customers in urban areas. From a regulatory standpoint, wireless has had issues in the past. It is important to point out that there is also a lack of maintenance culture for wireless networks when things go wrong. There are also many fiber cables being planned for Africa. We foresee a couple of problems with fiber. Fiber also requires maintenance. Again, there is not a maintenance culture.” Click to Read
16. Financial Crisis Looms Over Satellite Investment Symposium – Oct. 15.
The discussion between financial analysts and satellite executives at the ISIS Satellite Investment Symposium was dominated by talk of the recent financial crisis on Wall Street.
Craig Moffett, managing director of Sanford Bernstein, urged his panel of mobile satellite service executives and members of the audience to readjust their business model.
"We are heading into a nuclear winter of funding," said Moffett. "$1 trillion of funding has been wiped out. $15 trillion of lending capacity has disappeared. Any business plan that your companies had four weeks ago needs to be thrown out the window. Credit is going to be tight, and in order to gain stock share, smaller players need to spend on an excess of scale. In an environment with tight credit, smaller players die. There needs to be drastic change. How will you do it? Click to Read
17. Cash Flow Problems Led to WorldSpace Bankruptcy Filing – Oct. 23
WorldSpace Inc.’s filed to reorganize under bankruptcy protection primarily due to liquidation and cash flow problems the satellite radio operator faced, spokeswoman Judith Pryor told Satellite News.
Worldspace has faced problems raising additional capital for some time. “We had been given several extensions over the last year from the holders of our secure notes,” said Pryor. “They could not give us any more extensions and we could not pay them back.”
WorldSpace Inc., along with U.S. subsidiaries 1worldspace Systems Corp. and AfriSpace Inc., filed voluntary petitions for reorganization under chapter 11 on Oct. 17. 1worldspace India, a wholly owned independent business unit, has not filed for protection from its creditors and said it will continue its business activities as usual. Click to Read
18. Serving the U.S. Military’s Satcom Needs Through Hosted Commercial Payloads – Nov. 10.
Maj. Michael Moyles of the U.S. Air Force’s Space Superiority Panel is a strong believer in the ability of hosted commercial payloads to serve the satellite communication needs of U.S. Department of Defense. In 2004, he compiled a thesis at the Naval Graduate School that analyzed how hosted payloads could better meet the U.S. military’s capacity demands.
“It is no secret that it takes the U.S. Department of Defense around 70 months from the time we identify a requirement to the time that we have a satellite on orbit,” said Moyles. “That amount of time, in most cases, is too long to wait and that is when we look to lease to commercial services.” Click to Read
19. SpaceX Facilities Open 24 Hours to Deliver on Contracts – Nov. 24.
Space Exploration Technology Corp.’s (SpaceX) Hawthorne, Calif. facility is a remodeled Boeing hangar where engines for the 747 aircraft were once manufactured. The only elements left from the Boeing days are the track-mounted cranes dangling from the ceilings, but those cranes work on a different kind of engine now.
SpaceX Director of Communications, Emily Shanklin took Satellite News News Editor Jeffrey Hill on a tour of the facilities and with Senior Mission Manager Max Vozoff, explained the design of the business and its products. “You couldn’t find a company more atypical in this industry than SpaceX. Things here move very fast,” said Vozoff. Click to Read
20. Bednarek Explains SES Americom’s IPTV Retreat – Dec. 22.
SES Americom will stop offering its IPTV service in North America by mid-2009. IP-Prime had been a key part of the operator’s strategy to tap into the growing IPTV market in the United States, however, with telcos, particularly smaller- and medium-sized operators, finding the TV market a tough place to build a business, SES decided IP-Prime was not meeting expectations.
Robert Bednarek, CEO of SES Americom-New Skies, discussed why IP-Prime no longer has a place in the U.S. IPTV market and what this means for SES’s plans to tap into the IPTV market around the globe. Click to Read
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