LAS VEGAS–With a two-year non-compete clauses following the sale of certain satellites to Intelsat set to expire in March 2006, Loral Skynet is preparing to come back into the U.S. broadcast market in a big way.

“Plans are in motion,” Loral Skynet President Patrick Brant told Satellite Today here during the National Association of Broadcasters’ annual trade show. “We expect to become a solid player in the market.”

Brant declined to offer specific details on some of Loral Skynet’s specific plans on how it will compete in the U.S. market after a two-year absence, but pointed to a couple of areas of growth in the overall broadcast market, namely high definition television and the occasional use market, which Brant said is always a “hot subject.”

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