News Analysis

The June 2013 issue of the Satellite Executive Briefing magazine

The June 2013 issue of the Satellite Executive Briefing magazine focusing on the Asian Satellite Market sponsored by Thuraya .  Click here to read or download the issue. Featuring:

Pay TV Boom Fueling Demand in Asia-Pacific  by Peter Galace

The Renaissance of Small Satellites by Dr. Joseph Pelton

Update on Papua New Guinea  by Chris Frith

The Satellite-Eye View of the Broadcast Booth by Robert Bell

Networking Towards a High Throughput Maritime Space by  Martin Jarrold

plus IndustryBriefs, Market Briefs, Executive Moves, Product and Services MarketPlace Guide to CommunicAsia 2013 in Singapore, Vital Statistics and Satellite Markets and Research 25TM Stock Index

Video and Audio Interviews from Satcom Africa 2013 in Johannesburg, South Africa

View video interviews with key executives from the Satcom Africa 2013 exhibition in Johannesburg, South Africa.   Featuring interviews with:Felix Damiba, Managing Director, Africa  Asia Broadcast Satellite; Nabil al Shanti  COO, ARABSATOmar Trujillo,VP-Africa and Latin America,O3b Networks; Jerome van der Putt, CCO and Fulvio Sansone, CTO, SatADSL and  Pradeep  UnniEVP–Marketing and Sales, MEA,Thaicom.  To view the videos click here.


Euro Media Acquires Alfacam

Bry-Sur Marne, France, June 19, 2013 — Euro Media Group, a provider of broadcast services across Europe, has acquired the technical resources of Alfacam, a Belgian firm specializing in the recording and broadcasting of live events worldwide.

Significant Effort is Still Needed to Meet Europe’s Superfast Broadband Challenge

London, UK. June 17, 2013--This week the European Commission updated its Digital Agenda Scoreboard, measuring progress with respect to the targets set out in the Digital Agenda. A new study completed by Point Topic shows that whilst nearly all households in Europe could access basic broadband services at the end of 2012, significant challenges still remain in delivering high-speed broadband to all.

Greece Closes state Broadcasting Company Due to Austerity

Athens, Greece, June 13, 2013 — The Greek government announced on Wednesday it was replacing Hellenic Broadcasting Corp. with New Hellenic Radio, Internet and Television, shortened to NERIT, which is expected to launch in August.

DirecTV Acquires LifeShield, Enters Home Security Business Acquires LifeShield

El Segundo, Calif., June 11, 2013 — DirecTV is entering the home security and automation business by acquiring Pennsylvania-based LifeShield Home Security.

FCC to Probe FSS Competitive Practices

Washington, D.C.,  June 11, 2013 — The Federal Communications Commission is initiating an inquiry into the competitive practices of the Fixed Satellite Services (FSS) industry because of allegations that some operators are “warehousing” satellite orbital locations and frequency assignments and are barring competitors from purchasing capacity on their satellites.

Liberty Global Completes Acquisition of Virgin Media

Denver, Colo., June 10, 2013--Liberty Global plc has completed its acquisition of British cable operator Virgin Media Inc. in a stock and cash merger valued at approximately US$ 24 billion (€18.26 billion) following shareholder approvals, regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions.

‘TV Everywhere’ Less than Half Deployed Four Years after Launch

Plano, Tex., June 7, 2013--According to The Diffusion Group (TDG), more than four years after the first public announcement of the cable industry’s ‘TV Everywhere’ (TVE) initiative, deployment to America’s multichannel TV subscribers remains at less than 50%.

CBS Acquires Full Ownership of TV Guide Digital

New York, NY, June 4, 2013--CBS Corp. has acquired full control of TV Guide’s online and mobile apps divisions after buying out the 50 percent share held by Lionsgate Entertainment.This latest deal makes CBS the outright owner of Lionsgate’s digital assets, including TVGuide.com and TV Guide Mobile, which provide news and information about TV shows and movies in addition to TV listings.

Ericsson Mobility Report: LTE and Smartphones Driving Video Traffic Growth

Stockholm, Sweden, June 3, 2013--The new edition of the Ericsson Mobility Report reveals thatmobile-data traffic will continue to grow significantly in the coming years, a trend driven mainly by video. Overall data traffic is expected to grow 12-fold by the end of 2018. Increasing usage is driven by continual growth in the amount of content available as well as the improved network speeds that come with HSPA and LTE development.