As this issue was going to press, Intelsat announced June 23 that at 10:03 a.m. EDT, the Intelsat Americas-8 (IA-8) was successfully launched by Sea Launch LLC aboard a Zenit-3SL rocket.

The satellite, built by Space Systems/Loral, will operate from 89 degrees West and will broadcast, direct-to-home and broadband data services to customers in the Americas, the Caribbean, Alaska and Hawaii.

The satellite carries 28 C-band and 36 Ku-band transponders and 24 Ka-band spot beams. Intelsat officials said a substantial portion of the capacity was committed to customers prior to the launch.

Intelsat CEO David McGlade said IA-8 offers high-powered Ku-Band coverage of all 50 states, relieving some of the current capacity constraints facing all operators serving the U.S. market.