Satellite News articles from November 2004

Satellite News archives from November 2004

At Press Time: New Skies Sale Gets FCC Nod.
November 1, 2004... The Netherlands-based New Skies Satellites NV [NSK], a global satellite operator, will be sold to affiliates of The Blackstone Group, a private investment firm, after receiving approval from the U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC). ...

Delphi Goes Beyond Wi-Fi With MyFi.
November 1, 2004... Troy, Mich.-based Delphi Corp. [DPH] is a prime example of how satelliteindustry opportunities are growth engines for automotive-technology companies. Delphi has ridden the surging subscriber gains of XM Satellite Radio [XMSR], and it also...

Intelsat Struggles To Rebound.
November 1, 2004... The revenues and expenses at Intelsat Ltd., headquartered in Pembroke, Bermuda, rose during its third quarter ended Sept. 30, while the global satellite operator simultaneously attempted to cut jobs in an effort to improve bottom-line results....

Rhizomania Battle Goes High Tech With Imagery.
November 1, 2004... Longmont, Colo.-based Digital-Globe is teaming with the Upper Midwest Aerosopace Consortium (UMAC) at the University of North Dakota to explore using high-resolution QuickBird satellite images to research the impact of Rhizomania disease on...

Spotlight: RaySat Unveils Two-Inch Antenna.(RaySat Inc.)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... McLean, Va.-based RaySat Inc., a supplier of mobile antennas and communications equipment, is starting to demonstrate an ultra-low-profile antenna to automobile manufacturers that could be embedded in new vehicles to provide live satellite...

Inmarsat Pressured By Need To Shift Traditional Focus.
November 1, 2004... By Jose del Rosario Mobile-satellite services traditionally have focused on maritime and aeronautical markets where the business case for tapping these sectors is compelling. London-based Inmarsat was created as an intergovernmental...

How Arabsat Is Beefing Up Mid-East Service Offerings.(Interview)
November 1, 2004... The Middle East is a vibrant market for satellite communications. In the direct-to-home (DTH) arena, such operators as Showtime have gained subscribers at a healthy rate. Showtime also has high Average Revenue Per User (ARPU) figures among its...

BSkyB Hangs Marketing Hat On Interactive Ads.
November 1, 2004... BSkyB, the U.K.-based satellite direct-to-home (DTH) operator, hopes its ambitious SkyView project finally will convince creative teams within advertising agencies about the power of interactive advertising. The panel, which consists of 20,000...

BellSouth Scores With NFL Football.(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... Atlanta-based BellSouth Corpora-tion [BLS] reported last week its recent move to introduce a new bundled service package that includes the DirecTV satellite television service is gaining early traction. With the third-quarter launch of a...

Garmin Outperforms Expectations.(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... Garmin reported third-quarter earnings per share (EPS) ahead of expectations, driven by a 55.9-percent consumer gross margin, according to a research note from Morgan Stanley. Total revenues were up about 43 percent yearover-year, in line with...

SBCA Fights NAB Petition.(Satellite Broadcasting and Communications Association)(National Association of Broadcasters)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... The Satellite Broadcasting and Communications Association's (SBCA's) government affairs staff is focused on fighting the National Association of Broadcasters' (NAB) "ridiculous petition" opposing the delivery of local weather and traffic...

HNS Unveils Video-Conferencing Tool.
November 1, 2004... Germantown, Md.-based Hughes Network Systems (HNS), a global provider of satellite broadband products and services, introduced what it calls a comprehensive package of services for companies looking to distribute highimpact digital content to...

iDirect Technologies.
November 1, 2004... Herndon, Va.-based iDirect Tech-nologies, a privately held company that designs, develops, and markets bi-directional, satellite-based broadband access solutions is broadening its product offering. The new iDirect iNFINITI series product line...

Navicom Unveils Battery-Powered Unit.
November 1, 2004... A new portable Global Positioning System (GPS) unit with as much as 300 percent more battery power will be available commercially this month through Scottsdale, Ariz.-based Automotive Capital Group Inc. [AOCP], a wholly owned subsidiary of...

Honeywell Intros Space-Based IC Gear.
November 1, 2004... Honeywell [HON] rolled out a 150-nanometer, 15-million-gate integrated circuit (IC) technology it says exponentially increases speed and bandwidth capabilities for processing and transmitting data in aerospace systems, including space...

Sirius Goes Full Tilt For Subscriber Gains.
November 1, 2004... Wall Street can be fickle in picking the financial performance measures it uses to evaluate publicly traded companies. For satellite radio companies, the focus right now is on notching subscriber gains. As a result, both New York City-based...

At Press Time: Apollo Nears HNS Purchase.(Brief Article)
November 15, 2004... The prospective sale of Germantown, Md.-based Hughes Net-work Systems (HNS) to private-equity firm Apollo Management appears to be moving toward announcement. Satellite News has written about the potential deal but not all the issues involved...

DirecTV Lines Up With NFL Again.(National Football League)
November 15, 2004... El Segundo, Calif.-based DirecTV Inc., the largest satellite TV service in the United States, concluded that it could at least break even on the fiveyear, $3.5 billion agreement with the National Football League (NFL) that it announced last...

NAB Bows To Satellite Radio.
November 15, 2004... It is rare for the powerful National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) to lose an important Washington battle. As a result, the NAB's decision to abruptly drop attempts to convince regulators to stop the two U.S. satellite radio services from...

Copenhagen Airport Upgrades GPS Capability.(Global Positioning System)
November 15, 2004... The ever-growing need to track assets for safety and security reasons has led the Copenhagen Airport in Denmark to upgrade the Global Positioning System (GPS) technology it uses. Copenhagen Airport is among the large number of organizations...

Spotlight: Holiday Promotion At Sea.(Brief Article)
November 15, 2004... Oslo, Norway-based Telenor Satellite Services already is in the giving spirit with its plans to offer cut-rate phone calls to the crew of its sea-based clients during the upcoming holiday season. The company, in tandem with satellite operator...

Global Satellite Operators Face Ownership Dynamics.
November 15, 2004... By Ramin Khadem Apax Partners and Permira, arguably two of the most respected private equity firms in Europe, started a minor revolution with their purchase of a controlling stake in Inmarsat nearly a year ago. Until then, the satellite...

EADS Astrium CEO Prepares For Long-Term Growth.(Interview)
November 15, 2004... With private-equity (PE) firms investing heavily in such satellite operators as PanAmSat, New Skies Satellites and Intelsat, capital expenditures for ordering new satellites could be cut industry-wide. If capex plans for new satellites are...

Near Earth Forms Advisory Board.(Near Earth LLC)(Brief Article)
November 15, 2004... New Canaan, Conn.-based Near Earth LLC, a boutique investment bank that focuses on satellite-related industries, formed an advisory board that boasts an impressive array of prominent people from the industry. NearEarth, led by former Wall...

XM, Pioneer Combine For Advanced Traffic Service.
November 15, 2004... Washington, D.C.-based XM Satellite Radio [XMSR], a U.S. satellite radio service with more than 2.5 million subscribers, is trying to keep its competitive advantage in new audio technology with a series of recent product introductions. The...

Arianespace Prepares For Soyuz Launch.(Brief Article)
November 15, 2004... The recent maiden flight of an improved Soyuz rocket was an important step in bringing Russia's workhorse vehicle into Arianespace's family of commercial launch vehicles. The mission is a step toward allowing the Soyuz to fly from the company's...

SBC To Offer IP-Based Advanced TV.
November 15, 2004... Telecom giant SBC Communications [SBC] announced bold investment plans Thursday that will have an impact on satellite-TV and cable-TV operators in the regional telephone company's service area. SBC unveiled plans to build an advanced,...

Why The Bundling Battle Is Escalating.
November 15, 2004... Bundled services are here to stay. Cable operators that have gone digital can offer multichannel video, Internet and Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) services. To compete, satellite TV services are teaming with telephone companies to match...

At Press Time: ADL Challenges Hezbollah Satellite Network.(Anti-Defamation League)(Brief Article)
November 29, 2004... Satellite News has learned that the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) is appealing to the French government to order the French Broadcasting Agency to terminate the broadcast license of Al-Manar, the satellite network of the Hezbollah terrorist...

Sirius Reunites Karmazin With Stern.(Sirius Satellite Radio, Mel Karmazin, Howard Stern)
November 29, 2004... With the dust still not settled after the blockbuster signing of shock jock Howard Stern, Sirius Satellite Radio [SIRI] made headlines again last week with another huge addition to the team when it announced that Mel Karmazin would be taking...

Blackstone Execs Confident New Skies Deal Will Pay Off.(Blackstone Group)
November 29, 2004... The Blackstone Group could keep its controlling interest in New Skies Satellites [NSK] for around seven years. The private-equity (PE) firm recently completed the acquisition of New Skies for $956 million in cash (SN, June 14). However, the...

Alcatel Hopes Liaison Will Have Spinoff Benefits.
November 29, 2004... Alcatel won a key contract with the European Commission (EC) to be prime contractor of an ambitious R&D project that could provide such organizations as police forces, firefighters and utilities with enhanced satellite-positioning solutions....

Spotlight: Efficiency Through Standardization.
November 29, 2004... While its contributions to satellites may not garner the media attention that some of the bigger companies get, Blacksburg, Va.-based VPT Inc. still has something to offer in terms of building a better business model. VPT's primary...

Taking In-Car Entertainment By Storm.
November 29, 2004... With a technology foundation firmly laid in providing broadband services to train riders in Europe, RaySat has turned to the U.S. marketplace with a different target in mind: the growing in-vehicle entertainment industry. The company hit...

XM Adds Internet-Only Channels.(Brief Article)
November 29, 2004... File this item in the "what are they thinking?" category. XM Satellite Radio [XMSR] last week announced it added two new music channels that will appear exclusively on its XM Radio Online premium Internet radio service. The two channels...

China Enters Satellite Broadcasting Market...(Brief Article)
November 29, 2004... Satellite News has learned that China plans to launch a television broadcasting satellite in the first half of 2006. According to reports, the satellite will provide broadcasting services to that part of China's population that currently does...

...While Voom Increases Its Capacity.(Brief Article)
November 29, 2004... Rainbow Media Enterprises, a subsidiary of Cablevision Systems Corp. [CVC], said its year-old Voom satellite service will nearly double its capacity March 2005, and it will increase its current offering of 39 high-definition channels to more...

Stratellite On Track For 2005 Launch.(Brief Article)
November 29, 2004... While this is not about the future launch of a space-based asset, Satellite News has been keeping a close eye on the developments of what are being called "stratellites," because there is the potential for these airships (that will sit at an...

UAE Home To New Satellite Operator?(Brief Article)
November 29, 2004... Satellite Today has learned that satellite operator Yahsat is undergoing preparations to begin operations in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Specific plans, including what types of services Yahsat will offer, have not been disclosed, but it is...

SHVERA Passage Forces Changes At EchoStar.
November 29, 2004... In what has been described as quick action by Congress, the House and Senate passed omnibus appropriations legislation that included the Satellite Home Viewer Extension and Reauthorization Act of 2004 (SHVERA) on Nov. 20. Among the act's...