Intelsat

Intelsat Ltd. reported revenues of $1.7 billion in 2006 but posted a loss of $368.7 million, the satellite operator announced March 30. In 2005, Intelsat lost $325.3 million on revenues of $1.2 billion.

The increased loss in 2006 primarily was due to additional interest expense due to the debt associated with the PanAmSat acquisition, which was completed in July, and an increase in losses from an investment in WildBlue Communications Inc. The 2006 loss also included a $49 million charge to write down the book value of the IS-802 satellite, which suffered an anomaly in September, and $26.5 million in restructuring costs related to the acquisition of PanAmSat.

PanAmSat operations contributed revenue of $456.7 million to Intelsat in 2006, the company said.

Lease revenue increased $451.2 million to $1.2 billion in 2006, while managed solutions revenue improved $62.5 million to $173.4 million. Channel revenue fell from $223.3 million in 2005 to $204.1 million in 2006, while Mobile Satellite Services and other revenue decreased $3.4 million to $74.6 million in the same period.

Intelsat’s backlog stood at $8.1 billion at the end of 2006, the company said.

Intelsat will increase its planned capital expenditures in 2007 by $130 million to cover accelerated construction and launch plans in the wake of the January Sea Launch failure that destroyed an SES satellite, Intelsat COO Jim Frownfelter said during a March 30 telephone conference to discuss the company’s 2006 financial performance.

Intelsat has eight satellites either under construction or scheduled to be placed into orbit before the end of the year, including three spacecraft that had been scheduled to be launched by Sea Launch or Land Launch in 2007.

Intelsat has moved the launch of the Intelsat 11, formerly PAS-11, and the Horizons-2 satellites from Sea Launch to a September Arianespace mission and has accelerated the manufacturing schedule of a ground spare satellite, Frownfelter said.

"The resulting schedule delays [following the Sea Launch failure] have caused us to accelerate the build of a ground spare that will be positioned as a replacement for Intelsat 11," Frownfelter said. "By continuing construction we are protecting our DTH business in Brazil while improving our flexibility to repurpose the spacecraft" if Intelsat 11 reaches orbit.

Sea Launch is scheduled to place the Galaxy 18 satellite into orbit for Intelsat before the end of the year, but the date depends on the results of the Sea Launch failure investigation, Frownfelter said.

Intelsat’s total capital expenditures will now be $615 million in 2007, but the company expects the changes to results in a reduction in spending in 2009.

Globalstar

Globalstar Inc. reported profits of $23.6 million revenues of $136.7 million in 2006 , the company announced March 28. In 2005, the company earned $18.7 million on revenues of $127.1 million.

Service revenue improved from $81.5 million in 2005 to $92 million in 2006, while equipment revenue dipped slightly from $45.7 million in 2005 to $44.6 million in 2006. Sales in 2005 benefited from additional demand generated in the Southeast United States following Hurricanes Katrina and Wilma.

Globalstar added 67,000 subscribers in 2006 to close the year with more than 260,000 subscribers.

In February, Globalstar warned that degradation of the performance of antennas in its constellation of satellites could lead to loss of service as early as next year. The company continues to investigate the problem and has realigned the orbit of some satellites to help alleviate the problem. Globalstar has announced plans to launch 48 satellites to integrate with and eventually replace its first-generation constellation.

Hughes

Hughes Network Systems reported revenues of $858.2 million in 2006, up from revenues of $806.9 million in 2005, the company announced March 26. The company’s profits slipped from $24 million in 2005 to $19.1 million in 2006.

The major contributors to revenue growth were consumer/SMB business, which reported an 18 percent increase in revenues to $292 million in 2006, and the mobile satellite business, which improved 47 percent in the same period.

WorldSpace Satellite Radio

WorldSpace Satellite Radio lost $128.6 million in 2006 on revenues of $15.6 million, compared to losses of $79.9 million on revenues of $11.7 million in 2005, the company announced March 26.

WorldSpace added more than 22,000 subscribers in the 2007 fourth quarter, bringing its total subscriber base to nearly 200,000 – a 73 percent increase over the end of 2006. More than 162,000 of those subscribers are in India, where WorldSpace added nearly 24,000 subscribes in the final three months of 2007.

Ericsson, Tandberg

Ericsson has received acceptances and purchased 15.1 million shares of Tandberg Television, or about 90 percent of outstanding shares, Ericcson announced March 26. Ericsson made an unsolicited offer in February to acquire Tandberg for 9.8 billion Norwegian kroner ($1.6 billion).