[Satellite News 05-04-11] Yahsat has finally seen its Yahsat 1A satellite launched by Arianespace in late April after a brief launch delay. The Middle East-based satellite operator now plans to get to work selling capacity.
    Yahsat 1A and Yahsat 1B satellites are two of the biggest satellites that the Middle East region has seen in recent times. Yahsat CEO Jassem Al Zaabi is confident the new satellite will help the operator join the top FSS/BSS operator ranks by the end of 2012. Al Zaabi spoke with Satellite News about the company’s short-term strategy and whether the operator will consider new satellites in the long-term.

Satellite News: With Yahsat 1A now launched, how is the satellite’s capacity sale progressing?

Al Zaabi: I can tell you that the company is doing very well in terms of revenue commitment and revenue generation. We are very happy with what we have from the existing suppliers. We think we are in a great position, not just in the region, but worldwide. We believe that with the commitments we have now and our revenue generations prospects for both Yahsat 1A and Yahsat 1B, we will be within the top 10 FSS/BSS satellite operators worldwide by the end of 2012. That is definitely our target.

Satellite News: How are the dynamics in the Middle East satellite market right now and where do you see the main demands for capacity?

Al Zaabi: There are three segments to talk about here. You have the consumer, enterprise and government segments. In the consumer space, it is very clear to us that YahClick has proven to be a very big hit. There has been a lot of activity here. In fact, the demand has, at times, been overwhelming in some areas. We are seeing that our service providers are having a great experience. When it comes to enterprise, whether you use YahClick or our enterprise solutions or C-band connectivity, we see that there is a hunger on the enterprise side for more bandwidth. When it comes to government, we believe the government sector is probably third in terms of demands for capacity, but we believe it is under-served in terms of end-to-end type of solutions. We are looking at the three sectors and we believe Yahsat has a very exciting market to serve.

Satellite News: How do you see the market for satellite broadband in the Middle East?

Al Zaabi: There is always great demand for capacity and broadband internationally. This applies to all the markets we are serving today. We are not sure whether we will see a number of operators launch big Ka-band satellites in these regions. The multi-beam satellites are not very straightforward. It takes time to build these Ka-band satellites. We think we will have first-mover advantage in the Middle East and Africa. We are determined to be at the forefront. As of today, a number of operators have not formulated their Ka-band strategies, but most acknowledge it is an attractive platform to carry such services.

Satellite News: Will Yahsat order more satellites this year?

Al Zaabi: I think that is a very logical move for a new satellite operator. If you have satellites that meet certain utilization targets, then you always strive to launch more satellites and have organic growth. It makes sense to look at more satellites and more payloads. But, to do that, you need to secure more orbital slots. We have been working on that for some time, and we believe we have some attractive orbital slots that can serve our growth strategy.
    I am not sure if we will announce a new satellite this year. It depends on what the market is going to offer. At the moment, we are very focused on delivering the first phase of our system to our shareholders, which is getting the system up and running, providing services for our clients. After this, we will then start our discussion about next generation satellites. It is not so relevant whether we do it this year or next year.

Satellite News: Are you starting work on potential configurations for new satellites?

Al Zaabi: Definitely. Part of our strategy is to find long-term and short-term strategies for growth. We are definitely working in this direction. We are exploring both scenarios and we are getting to a point where we want to balance between capacity requirements, orbital positions and financial expectations.
    I am being cautious here, but I think it is fair to say we are considering growth strategies and definitely considering expanding our operations either by launching new satellites or harboring new payloads jointly with other operators. Depending on the market feedback, I think you could hear something from us in either 2011 or 2012. This will determine when we come back to the market.

Satellite News: Are you looking for more partnership deals like you signed with CapRock?

Al Zaabi: We are open to more partnership type deals and we could announce new partnership deals relatively soon. We also look for synergies with existing partners to improve things there. You have the potential for hosted payloads. These deals are all about efficiency and economies of scale, and minimizing costs. If a hosted payload deal makes financial sense, we will definitely go for it. Are we working on such a scenario today? What I can say is these discussions are taking place all over the industry and we would entertain such options if they made sense.