[Satellite TODAY 11-05-10] A surge in revenues from the multi-usage business and the data and value-added services business helped boost Eutelsat’s first quarter 2011 revenues by more than 12 percent to 285.6 million euros ($400.8 million) compared to the same stage last year, the operator announced in its latest financial results, issued Nov. 5.
    Revenues in data and value-added services improved 23.5 percent due to demands for Internet and GSM traffic, while multi-usage revenues grew 25.8 percent, with strong demand for capacity in the Middle East and Central Asia. Eutelsat still derives the majority of its revenues from video applications, where the operator posted 8 percent growth.
    “Eutelsat turned in excellent Q1 10/11 revenues yesterday evening after trading. The top line grew well ahead of our expectations and those of the consensus. This solid performance was driven by healthy trends for the video segment, but most of all by an explosion in data and multi-usage revenues,” Eric Beaudet, an analyst with Natixis Securities, said in a report released Nov. 4.
    While Beaudet believes Eutelsat’s performance has placed the operator in a good short-term position, future revenues could be affected after Eutelsat was forced to declare the W3B satellite a total loss following a failure of its onboard propulsion system shortly after its Oct. 28 launch. The satellite was intended to replace three other spacecraft serving Central Europe. W3C, slated for launch in mid-2011m will replace W3B, and  Eutelsat said it will start a new satellite development program with a targeted launch in the first quarter of 2013.
    “Despite this better-than-expected first quarter … growth is likely to slow now following the failure of the W3B satellite which, located in an orbital position where demand is robust but now full up, will deprive the group of a growth driver over the next few quarters,”  Beaudet said.
     All eyes will now be on Eutelsat’s upcoming launch of Ka-Sat, scheduled for late December. UBS Analyst Julie de Vigneral said Ka-Sat should serve Eutelsat as a key catalyst to increase growth targets. “As of October 2010, Eutelsat had negotiated distribution contracts with 63 distributors over Europe, which well illustrates the attractive quality of broadband Internet through satellite. The commercialization will only start following the satellite launch.”

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