News Analysis

Luxembourg, February 20, 2014--Airbus Defence and Space (formerly Astrium)  has won a contract with SES for the design and construction of the latest addition to its fleet, the SES-10 satellite which will be covering the Americas. The new satellite will be based on the Eurostar E3000 platform and will be equipped with a dual chemical and electrical propulsion system.

Petah Tikva, Israel - February 18, 2014 - Gilat Satellite Networks Ltd. today reported its results for the fourth quarter and year ended December 31, 2013. Revenue for 2013 was US$ 234.9 million with EBITDA of US$ 16.3 million. Gilat reported strong backlog of US$ 228 million at the end of 2013 more than doubled as compared to US$98.9 million at the end of 2012.

Baikonur, Kazakhstan, February 15, 2014 – International Launch Services (ILS) successfully launched the TURKSAT-4A satellite into orbit today on an ILS Proton vehicle. The satellite was built by Mitsubishi Electric Corporation for TURKSAT Satellite Communication, Cable TV and Operation Inc. Co. (TURKSAT A.S.). This was the first ILS Proton launch for both the satellite operator and the manufacturer; it was also the first Proton launch of the year.

Paris, France, February 14, 2014--Eutelsat anounced financial results for half year ending December 31, 2013, reporting revenue growth of 2.2%, and 3.1% at constant currency and excluding non-recurring revenues in line with full-year objectives. EBITDA was  €501 million (approximately US$ 676.83 million). The EBITDA margin was 77.4%.

Paris, France, February 13, 2014--According to Euroconsult's newly released research report entitled "Profiles of Government Space Programs," global budgets for space programs dropped to US$ 72.1 billion in 2013 following peak spending at US$ 72.9 billion in 2012. This is the first time since 1995 that public space programs worldwide have entered a downward trend, a direct result of the cyclical nature of countries' investment in space-based infrastructures combined with governments' belt-tightening efforts during tough economic times.   

Oslo, Norway, February 12, 2014-- In the fourth quarter of 2013, Telenor Group reported revenues of NOK 28 billion (US$ 4.28 billion), representing an organic revenue growth of 1%. EBITDA before other items was NOK 8.99 billion, the EBITDA margin was 32.6%, and operating cash flow was NOK 4.42 billion (US$ 720 million).

Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, February 11, 2014- Arabsat and Morgan for Information and Communications Technology (MICT) signed a contract where Arabsat will provide Morgan with Satellite capacities on Arabsat-5C at the orbital position 20° East, with full coverage to the African continent, in addition to Arabsat usual coverage to the Middle East and large parts of Asia and Europe.

Kourou, French Guiana, February 6, 2014--The ABS-2 satellite was successfully launched  at 6:30  p.m. Kourou time today. The satellite was launched on an Ariane ECA launch vehicle from the Guiana Space Center.

London, UK, February 6, 2014-- Arqiva announced today the acquisiton of Capablue, the Connected TV, video-on-demand and content solution provider. The two companies already have a relationship, having partnered on solutions including the development of pay capabilities for the Arqiva Connect TV platform.

Stockholm, Sweden, February 6, 2014--Ericsson today announced it has entered into an agreement to acquire Massachusetts-based Azuki Systems, Inc., a provider of TV Anywhere delivery platforms for service providers, content owners and broadcasters.