AMC-9 Begins Commercial Services from 85 Degrees West

The hybrid C-band/Ku-band AMC-9 satellite has begun commercial service and soon will start serving a number of SES Americom customers who are being switched from the AMC-2 bird during the next few weeks. Customers that will be moved to the AMC-9 from the AMC-2 include: Clear Channel, several U.S. government networks, educational broadcasters in Louisiana and Pennsylvania, The New York Times, Petrocom, and USA Today.

SES Americom, the Princeton, N.J.-based unit of SES Global [Luxembourg: SESG], tested the Alcatel Space-built satellite after its June 6 launch via a Proton rocket from the Baikonur Cosmodrome.

Successful transition of customer services to AMC-9 will permit the early August move of AMC-2 from 85 degrees to 105 degrees West. At that time, the Ku-band payload of AMC-2 – launched in 1997 – will be used by EchoStar Communications [Nasdaq: DISH] to test its satellite TV services.