Satellite News

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Foxtel CEO Kim Williams yesterday echoed words from his counterpart at Austar earlier in the week, saying that the months ahead “appear confronting for the country and Australian business generally and this will inevitably provide Foxtel with challenges to maintain its growth momentum.”


While subscriptions rose 7% last year to reach 1.449 million at the end of December, (1.591 million including wholesale customers), Williams said the platform would need to offer new services to respond to the current challenges. These would be added progressively during the year, he said.

“The services will include a range of new channels, enhanced ways to navigate the Foxtel universe of channels and the introduction of Foxtel by Broadband. Foxtel’s broadband offer will allow subscribers to watch Foxtel on-line, exclusive events as well as shows from Foxtel’s most popular channels.”

Financially, Foxtel remains strong with leverage of 1.8 times EBITDA, no debt falling due until mid-2012 and a strongly hedged position against the fall in the Australian dollar.

EBITDA for the half-year to the end of 2008 was A$196 million, an increase of 19% on the same period the previous year. Revenue was A$908 million, up 13%, with subscription revenue up 11% to A$762 million.

Foxtel said that despite the economic climate, new subscriber additions were in line with the same period in 2007 with churn 0.2% lower at 13.3%. Nearly 45% of subscribers take the top pack and over one-third now take Foxtel iQ, with two-thirds of new subs in the half-year taking an iQ subscription. However, Foxtel HD+ signed up only 85,000 subscribers in the half-year.

© Rapid TV News 2009

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Cyfrowy Polsat unveils HD/receiver strategy


By Chris Dziadul | February 27, 2009

The Polish DTH platform Cyfrowy Polsat has outlined its plans for this year.

Speaking to Wirtualne Media, its president Dominik Libicki said that the service would introduce a five-channel HD package in the next few months.

At present the HD channels Cyfrowy Polsat offers are found in SD packages.

Libicki added that the platform would also introduce a HD receiver with a hard disk this autumn.

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UPC hits Polish digital ton


By Chris Dziadul | February 27, 2009

UPC’s digital cable rollout in Central and Eastern Europe has reached another milestone, with its Polish service reaching 100,000 subscribers.

Launched last May, it was reported only earlier this week to have ended 2008 with 79,100 subscribers.

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Kudelski launches OpenTV takeover bid

By Julian Clover | February 27, 2009 | 09:27 UK

The Kudelski Group is looking to cement its relationship with OpenTV through a $127 million (€99.63m) bid for the outstanding shares in the company.

The Swiss conditional access provider has held voting control of the San Francisco middleware and advertising solutions company since November 2006. Sales teams have already begun to work in tandem and Kudelski says the transaction would provide for better integration of solutions and services to customers. “Efforts to improve efficiencies and service delivery are vital to both the Kudelski Group and OpenTV in today’s economic environment,” the company said in a statement.

The $1.35 per share cash offer is based on a 35% premium on OpenTV’s closing share price on February 26. Kudelski will fund the purchase through third party debt.

It is anticipated that OpenTV will now form a special committee of independent directors to evaluate the proposal. Kudelski has stressed that while it wants to reach a definitive agreement as soon as possible it has no intention of disposing of its controlling stake should the bid be unsuccessful.

Announcing its 2008 financials, Kudeslski said some of the Group’s largest accounts had now moved to its new model, representing some 25 million smart cards, and having a strong effect on the 2008 results. One company to have adopted the new model is the US DTH operator EchoStar, where although the model contributed positively to revenues, it did have a negative effect on Group 2008 margins.

Kudelski reported a Group operating profit of CHF18.5 million, as revenues grew by 20.4% in constant currency to CHF1 billion.

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Cyfrowy Polsat with a new contract with Eutelsat

* 2009-02-28 11:58:32 / Janusz Sulisz
* Last update: 2009-02-28 19:30:39
* Source: Cyfrowy Polsat / tvpolsat.info

26 February 2009 year, the Board Polsat Digital has signed a multi-year agreement with satellite operator Eutelsat. It is the subject of hiring a satellite transponder capacity on the Hot Bird 9 (13 ° E). The value of the contract is denominated in euros and in the duration of a contract, converted to USD at the rate 4.5678 PLN for 1 euro published by the National Bank of Poland on 27 February 2009, will amount to 124 million €.


Terms and Conditions do not differ from market standards used for these types of agreements. The agreement was regarded as significant, therefore, that its value exceeds 10 percent. revenue for the last four quarters of turnover.

Cyfrowy Polsat currently manages the following transponders on the satellite Hot Bird 9 (13 ° E):

Hot Bird 8 (13 ° E) tp. 74 (12.188 GHz, pol. V, SR: 27500, FEC: 3 / 4)
Hot Bird 8 (13 ° E) tp. 78 (12.265 GHz, pol. V, SR: 27500, FEC = 3 / 4)
Bird 8 Hot (13 º E) tp. 79 (12.284 GHz, pol. H, SR: 27500, FEC: 3 / 4)
6 Hot Bird (13 º E) tp. 132 (11.158 GHz, pol. V, SR: 27500, FEC: 3 / 4)

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Arabsat plans a new satellite every year

By Robert Briel | March 1, 2009 | 11:53 UK


Arabsat announced it plans to launch a new satellite every year until 2012. The operator will announce plans with its next two planned satellites, the Badr-7 and Badr-5C during next week’s Cabsat 2009 in Dubai.
Eng. Khalid Balkheyour, Arabsat President and CEO, stated in a statement that “Arabsat will declares its new satellites Badr – 7 & 5 C which their contracts have been signed earlier this month as a step in Arabsat future plans that calls for launching a satellites every year till 2012. It’s also a good chance for Arabsat to cope up with the latest updates in the market of Satellites and Telecommunications and explore the new investments opportunities in the Middle East market. Arabsat will give a presentation, in cooperation with the ASBU, about the joint project of Menos.”
Arabsat operates a fleet opf satellites at the 26 Degree East and 30.5 Degree East positions. Badr-5 is a Eurostar-3000 model with 56 active transponders in Ku-band and Ka-band, Badr-5 will primarily provide full in-orbit back-up capacity both for Badr-4 and Badr-6 at its 26° East position. Badr-7 is also a Eurostar E3000 model, equipped with 36 active transponders in Ku-band aabd will also be placed at the at 26° East.

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Conditional access specialist Nagra Kudelski is mounting a take-over bid for middleware company Open TV. Kudelski already has voting control, but not economic control.
Andre Kudeslki, CEO at Nagra, says his company is offering minority shareholders a total of US$127m (€99.6m) for their shares, an impressive premium of some 35% over Open TV’s Feb 26 closing price.

Open TV’s Board will now consider the bid, but most observers expect it to be approved.

© Rapid TV News 2009