Satellite Today articles from June 2004

Satellite Today archives from June 2004

Sprint Offers Discounted Dish Service.
June 1, 2004... Sprint [FON] officials today said that customers in its 18-state local telephone operating territory now can subscribe to Dish Network direct-to-home satellite television service directly through Sprint. The deal makes the carrier a single...

Globecomm Launches DTH Platform In EMEA.
June 1, 2004... Globecomm Systems [GCOM] has entered the ethnic-programming video business by launching a direct-to-home video platform into Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA). The platform offers a full range of video-distribution capabilities,...

Intelsat Monitors Formula One Race Cars.
June 1, 2004... Officials from the BMW WilliamsF1 racing team tapped Intelsat to transmit mission-critical information during all European Grand Prix racing and testing days. Beginning this year, Intelsat's 905 satellite, located at 335 degrees East, will...

Eumetsat Signs Czech Deal.
June 1, 2004... Eumetsat, the intergovernmental organization that establishes and maintains operational meteorological satellites for 18 European states, has announced that the Czech Republic will become a Eumetsat cooperating state. The agreement gives the...

Dish Network Adds Six Chinese Channels To International Programming.
June 1, 2004... EchoStar Communications Corp. [DISH] added ET News, ET Drama, YOYO TV, ET China and JET TV International to its Chinese programming lineup in a complete package called The Chinese Super Pack. The Chinese package is available to EchoStar's Dish...

Fazoli's Taps Gilat For Broadband Retail Network.
June 1, 2004... Gilat Satellite Network Ltd. [GILTF] said its U.S.-based subsidiary, Spacenet Inc., has been chosen by Fazoli's Management Inc. to provide a Connexstar broadband satellite network to Fazoli's Italian restaurants in 33 states across the United...

Retired General Admonishes Industry To Work Together.
June 2, 2004... LONG BEACH, Calif.--The three sectors of the aerospace industry--commercial, civil space and military space--need to work together to lower expenses and exploit technological synergies, said Gen. Eugene Tattini [Ret.], deputy director of the...

BT Taps Intelsat For Satellite Broadband Service.
June 2, 2004... Intelsat officials today said BT Broadcast Services launched its satellite broadband service using the Intelsat system. The service is targeted to small and medium businesses as well as small office/home office users in the United Kingdom....

NRTC Redesigns Relationship With DirecTV.
June 2, 2004... DirecTV Inc., a unit of The DirecTV Group [DTV], today said the National Rural Telecommunications Cooperative (NRTC) and DirecTV have agreed to end NRTC's exclusive DirecTV service distribution contract, effective immediately. NRTC also...

Globalstar Improves Caribbean Coverage.
June 2, 2004... Globalstar LLC said its service quality in the Caribbean region has been "dramatically improved," following the installation of a fourth antenna at its regional gateway at Las Palmas, Puerto Rico. Officials said the new antenna gives the...

Kingston Inmedia Renamed.
June 2, 2004... Kingston Inmedia, a leading provider of broadband satellite services, changed its name to Inmedia Communications, and it will trade as Inmedia. The new identify stems from a leveraged buyout of the company in April 2004 by its management and...

SES Astra Takes Aim At Spanish Broadband Market.
June 3, 2004... SES Astra has signed a deal with Ya.com Internet Factory, owned by T-Online, to launch a new satellite broadband service in Spain called Yacom Satelite. The service is aimed at the more than five million people in Spain who do not have access...

DirecTV, Dish Win Highest Ratings For Customer Service.
June 3, 2004... Officials from The DirecTV Group [DTV] said today that their DirecTV satellite television unit tied with rival satellite TV service EchoStar Communications [DISH] in earning a customer satisfaction rating of 71 -- the highest score among...

EastEnders To Air Exclusively On Dish.
June 3, 2004... EchoStar Communications Corp. [DISH] officials today said the company has signed an exclusive agreement with BBC America to broadcast the BBC drama "EastEnders" on its Dish Network direct-to-home satellite television service via On Demand...

ViaSat Adds Furniture Chain To Immeon Satellite Communications Service.
June 3, 2004... ViaSat Inc. [VSAT] officials today said the company is expanding its Immeon shared-hub services to all Haverty Furniture Co. [HVT] locations under a new four-year agreement. Immeon will provide 768 kbps outbound channels to store locations and...

MTN, Intelsat Expand Relationship.
June 3, 2004... Officials from Maritime Telecommunications Network (MTN) and Intelsat today said the two companies have signed a new five-year contract under which Intelsat will provide MTN with additional capacity to expand the range of satellite-based...

Orbcomm Receives Contract From U.S. Coast Guard.
June 3, 2004... Officials from Orbcomm Inc. today said the company has been awarded a contract from the U.S. Coast Guard to develop and supply automatic identification system (AIS) capabilities over the Orbcomm satellite network. AIS is a shipboard broadcast...

Issues Linger About Future Success Of Broadband Systems.
June 4, 2004... LONG BEACH, Calif. -- Even though there seemingly is unending demand for broadband services throughout the world, nagging questions continue to linger whether satellite-based Internet companies will be a success in the commercial marketplace....

Government Sales Dominate Satellite Marketplace.
June 4, 2004... LONG BEACH, Calif. -- Continued strong growth in sales of transponders to government and military customers, coupled with strong, sustained numbers at DBS and satellite companies, will continue to drive worldwide satellite industry revenues....

GlobeCast Extends North American Presence.
June 4, 2004... GlobeCast launched a new satellite-distribution platform for new digital cable television networks in North America. The service will use C-band transponder capacity on PanAmSat's Galaxy 10R satellite -- part of the Galaxy cable neighborhood of...

Tachyon Connects Families To Remote Military Members.
June 4, 2004... Tachyon Networks Inc. officials yesterday said the company donated its patented, high-speed, carrier-grade satellite broadband network to the U.S. Army Europe and the Department of Defense (DoD) Dependent Schools-Europe to allow for the...

Tiger Green-Lights GPS-Based Game.
June 4, 2004... Officials from Gizmondo Europe Ltd., a subsidiary of Tiger Telematics Inc., today said game designer and strategic partner Indie Studios was given the go-ahead to produce the second of a unique series of games for the Gizmondo device that will...

Caterpillar Taps CSI Wireless For Asset-Tracking Solution.
June 4, 2004... CSI Wireless Inc. signed an agreement with Caterpillar Inc. to supply the company with an after-market asset tracking solution. CSI will supply an undisclosed number of its new PL102C asset trackers that allow Caterpillar to receive such...

Blackstone Group Buys New Skies For $956 Million.
June 7, 2004... New Skies Satellites N.V. [NSK], a global satellite communications company in The Hague, The Netherlands, agreed to be acquired for $956 million in cash by affiliates of The Blackstone Group, a private investment firm. The purchase price is...

Xantic Takes The Easy Option.
June 7, 2004... Xantic hopes to make satellite broadband services easier to use by launching an application called Easy Accelerator, which it says optimises Internet and intranet usage by reducing the size of the selected Web-page content. Inmarsat...

New Ship Security System Unveiled.
June 7, 2004... EMS SATCOM, a division of EMS Technologies [ELMG], today launched its Ship Security Alert System (SSAS). The system was designed to meet the demands of SOLAS (Safety of Life at Sea), Chapter XI-2, Regulation 6, which requires all Class 1...

Loral Skynet Rolls Out IP-Based Satellite Network.
June 7, 2004... Loral Skynet said SkyReach, the company's Internet Protocol (IP)-enabled service that provides two-way broadband services for secure private networks or high-speed Internet access, now is commercially available throughout the Americas. ...

Globecomm Wins $14.7 Million Afghan Contract.
June 7, 2004... Hauppauge, N.Y.-based Globecomm Systems [GCOM], a global provider of endto-end satellite-based communications solutions, was awarded a contract valued at $14.7 million from the Ministry of Communication, Islamic Transitional State of...

ITT Industries Wins $20M Contract For Next-Gen Weather Satellite.
June 8, 2004... An improved way to predict the path of severe storms is the impetus behind the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center awarding ITT Industries' Aerospace/Communications Division a $20 million contract to develop the next generation of Geostationary...

VOOM Eyes Five-Million Mark With Crutchfield Partnership.
June 8, 2004... VOOM, the first comprehensive high-definition (HD) satellite television service, will expand its distribution through a new partnership with Crutchfield Corporation, a large consumer-electronics retailer. Beginning this week, more than five...

MTG Launches New Movie Channels.
June 8, 2004... Modern Times Group (MTG) says its subsidiary Viasat Broadcasting will launch four new premium TV1000 channels in the Nordic territories. Viasat will broadcast a total of six premium movie channels beginning in September as it aims to establish...

XM Satellite Radio Tapped For 2004 Bonnaroo Music Festival.
June 8, 2004... Washington, D.C.-based XM Satellite Radio will broadcast live interviews and acoustic sets by artists from the sold-out 2004 Bonnaroo Music Festival in Manchester, Tenn. From June 11 to June 13, XM will use its XM Live Channel, XM 26 to...

Lockheed Martin Equips USAF C-5 Fleet With Navigation Capabilities.
June 8, 2004... Lockheed Martin [LMT] has begun field installations of its Avionics Modernization Program (AMP) kits into the U.S. Air Force's fleet of C-5 Galaxy strategic airlifters. Each AMP kit includes a Honeywell embedded global positioning/inertial...

SES Americom Inks Another Transponder Deal.
June 9, 2004... Princeton, N.J.-based SES Americom, the U.S.-based satellite-operating unit of SES Global [SESG], reached an agreement with Rainbow DBS, Cablevision System's [CVC] satellite TV division, to lease 16 transponders during the next 10 years to...

Pentagon Taps Simple Compound To Propel Satellites.
June 9, 2004... The U.S. military is developing fuel technology to extend the life of its global surveillance satellites. The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) is working with Proton Energy Systems on the "Water Rocket" program, through which...

Telenor Unveils New Maritime Service.
June 9, 2004... Telenor Satellite Services today announced the release of its latest broadband communications package, Sealink Global Access, it says will deliver high-speed global services to the maritime industry. The package includes onboard telephone/fax...

New NASA Satellite To Watch Over Earth.
June 9, 2004... NASA plans to launch the Aura Satellite from California's Vandenberg Air Force Base June 26. The spacecraft will enter the Earth's orbit with a mission to join a host of other satellites in monitoring the planet's climate and ozone layers. The...

GlobeCast Offers PPV Coverage Of Euro Tournament.
June 9, 2004... GlobeCast says its subsidiary GlobeCast WorldTV will offer Pay-Per View (PPV) broadcasts of the European Championship football tournament from Portugal to its U.S. subscribers in June and July. Customers can either buy the matches...

SIA Survey Shows Growth From Government Services.
June 10, 2004... The Satellite Industry Association (SIA), in cooperation with the Satellite Broadcasting & Communications Association (SBCA) and the Global VSAT Forum (GVF), issued a 2003 "State of The Satellite Industry" report that shows the industry amassed...

New Skies Expands Satellite Internet Service In Asia, Latin America.
June 10, 2004... New Skies Satellites N.V. [NSK] officials today announced two new Internet offerings: IPsys Broadband for Asia and IPsys Bandwidth On Demand for Latin America. In Latin America, New Skies launched a new IP broadband network hub, provided...

BSkyB Launches FTA Initiative.
June 10, 2004... BSkyB intends to launch a Free-To-Air (FTA) satellite service proposition in the United Kingdom later this year. The offering will comprise 200 TV and radio channels, and interactive services that will be available without a monthly subscriber...

USGS Survey Chooses ORBIMAGE As Earth-Imagery Provider.
June 10, 2004... Dulles, Va.-based ORBIMAGE, global provider of high-resolution Earth imagery products and services, won a multi-year contract from the United States Geological Survey (USGS). ORBIMAGE will use its OrbView-3 high-resolution satellite, launched...

General Dynamics Buys TriPoint Global Communications.
June 10, 2004... General Dynamics yesterday announced its acquisition of TriPoint Global Communications Inc., a private provider of ground-based satellite and wireless communication equipment and integration services for video, voice and data applications...

Microsoft Connected Car Technology Named Best Telematics Solution of 2004.
June 10, 2004... A panel of automotive and telematics technology experts selected Microsoft Connected Car Technology as Best Telematics Solution at Telematics Update Awards 2004. Powered by Windows Automotive technology, the Microsoft package provides drivers...

Dish Expands Into Three New Local Markets.
June 10, 2004... EchoStar Communications [DISH] cut over local programming in three more markets: Quincy, Ill.-Hannibal, Mo.-Keokuk, Iowa; Albany, Ga; and Monroe, La.-El Dorado, Ark. In Quincy, Ill., Dish Network direct-to-home broadcast satellite service...

FCC Grants Iridium More Spectrum.
June 11, 2004... Iridium Satellite LLC officials today said the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has expanded Iridium's spectrum with access to an additional 3.1 MHz to meet the increasing demand for Iridium's satellite voice and data service. Iridium...

New Skies CEO Speaks After Sale Announcement.
June 11, 2004... New Skies Satellites CEO Dan Goldberg believes the trend of privateequity firms investing in the satellite industry is a positive one. New Skies recently signed a definitive agreement for the sale of the company to affiliates of The Blackstone...

CSI Asset Tracker Helps Texas Cops Break Truck-Theft Ring.
June 11, 2004... Officials from CSI Wireless today said Texas police recovered more than $2.7 million in stolen goods and are poised to make several arrests to break up a Dallas-area truck theft ring with the help of CSI Wireless' GPS-enabled Asset-Link...

SSL Promotes Prevaux To NASA, Government Business Post.
June 11, 2004... Space Systems/Loral (SSL) named Robert Prevaux vice president of business development, and he will assume marketing and sales responsibilities for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), the National Oceanic and Atmospheric...

Networkcar Inks Reseller Deal.
June 11, 2004... Networkcar, a Reynolds and Reynolds [REY] company, signed an agreement with Johnson Industries under which Johnson will market Networkcar's fleetmanagement system to its customers. Networkcar's system collects and organizes detailed...

DISH Network Passes 10 Million-Customer Milestone.
June 14, 2004... EchoStar Communications Corp. [DISH] officials today announced the company surpassed the 10 million-subscriber mark for its DISH Network direct-to-home satellite television service. To celebrate the milestone, 1,000 existing customers will be...

XM Satellite Tops 2 Million Subs.
June 14, 2004... Meanwhile, XM Satellite Radio [XMSR] recently surpassed two million subscribers to its satellite radio service. The company launched its nationwide offering in November 2001, and it reached one million subscribers in October 2003. "The second...

Canal Digital CEO Believes Content Advantage Is Key.
June 14, 2004... Canal Digital, the largest satellite pay-TV operator in the Nordic region, is confident it can maintain its leading position in the market. In terms of why it is at the front of the pack, CEO Christian Albech told Satellite Today, "It is all...

HBO, Loral Skynet Renew Distribution Pact.
June 14, 2004... Loral Skynet and HBO Pacific Partners V.O.F. renewed their deal that has Loral distributing HBO Asia content across Asia via the Telstar 10 satellite. Specific details on the agreement, including the length of the new contract between the two...

Korean Co. Taps Gilat For VSAT Services.
June 14, 2004... Gilat Satellite Networks Ltd. [GILTF] entered into an agreement with Korean management and control company Taewang E&C Co. Ltd. for the supply of a Skystar 360E satellite hub and remote VSAT terminals. The satellite-based VSAT network was...

Globalstar Retains Access To Allocated Frequencies.
June 14, 2004... Globalstar LLC officials today said the Federal Communications Commission adopted a Report and Order with new rules for "Big LEO" mobile satellite systems that will allow Globalstar to continue using all of its currently assigned frequencies -...

Top Up TV CEO Hopes To Benefit From BSkyB's Freesat Move.
June 15, 2004... Top Up TV, the U.K.-based pay-TV operator, is unconcerned about BSkyB's potential entrance into the low end of the U.K. digital-TV market. In fact, Top Up TV's CEO Ian West told Satellite Today, "It will increase customers' focus on the low...

Acacia Files Multi-Party Patent-Infringement Suit.
June 15, 2004... Officials from Acacia Research Corp. [ACTG, CBMX] today said the company's Acacia Media Technologies Corp. subsidiary filed suit a lawsuit in the District Court for the Northern District of California, alleging infringement of Acacia's DMT...

Anik F2 Preps For Launch.
June 15, 2004... Arianespace said the Anik F2 satellite has arrived at the company's spaceport in French Guiana, and it is undergoing initial checkout in preparation for its scheduled July 9 launch. The satellite, built for Telesat Canada, is a Boeing [BA] 702...

Reidford Joins KVH Industries.
June 15, 2004... Robert Reidford has joined KVH Industries Inc. [KVHI] as director of business development for satellite products. He most recently served as sales manager for global diesel and commercial vehicle electronics at Delphi Electronics. ...

Vigil Unveils Maritime GPS System.
June 15, 2004... Vigil Locating Systems Corp. launched a new GPS tracking system tailored for the marine industry. The unit is water-resistant, and it self-reports intrusion alarms and non-authorized movement of the boat to its owner. The GPS units are...

SIA Board Names Cavossa Executive Director.
June 16, 2004... The board of directors of the Satellite Industry Association (SIA) named David Cavossa its new executive director, effective June 14. Cavossa has served as SIA's director of external relations for the last three years, and he has been acting...

ORBIMAGE Announces Plans For SEC Registration.
June 16, 2004... Dulles, Va.-based ORBIMAGE finally will register with the Securities And Exchange Commission (SEC) in the next few months, which will make accessing the company's financial information a bit easier. According to CEO Matthew O'Connell, "Our...

Loral Skynet Taps Integral Systems For Epoch Expansion.
June 16, 2004... Integral Systems Inc. [ISYS] signed a contract with Loral Skynet to support the expansion of Skynet's existing Integral-provided Epoch IPS (integrated product suite) satellite control system to support the Telstar 18 satellite. Epoch is a...

Regency Conversions Offers TracVision A5 Satellite-TV System.
June 16, 2004... Regency Conversions, a truck, van and sport utility vehicle custom conversion company, is offering KVH Industries' [KVHI] TracVision A5 low-profile satellite TV antenna for many of its new vehicles. The TracVision A5 will allow vehicle owners...

Telikom Papua New Guinea Plans Massive Rural Network.
June 16, 2004... Telikom Papua New Guinea tapped Gilat Satellite Networks Ltd. [GILTF] to provide a hub and 500 DialAw@y IP VSATs for rural telephony services across the island country. The network can expand to 2,000 sites, though no timetable was given for...

ViaSat Expands Internet Access In Malaysian Schools.
June 16, 2004... ViaSat Inc. [VSAT] officials said the company is supplying a LinkStar broadband satellite communications network to Smart Digital Communications Bhd in Malaysia to provide high-speed Internet Access to more than 1,500 schools. The value of the...

BSkyB Adds Non-Exec Board Members.
June 16, 2004... U.K. satellite pay-TV operator BSkyB made two key changes at its board level. It appointed Nicholas Ferguson as an independent, non-executive director of the company, effective June 15, and Andy Higginson agreed to join the board as a...

PanAmSat Exec Is Confident About HD's Future.
June 17, 2004... PanAmSat [SPOT] is confident that high-definition TV (HDTV) will continue to be a major growth opportunity for the company. The operator already is a strong player in the HD arena, and it plans to build on this emerging niche still further....

EchoStar Offers Local Channels In Toledo, Augusta.
June 17, 2004... According to EchoStar Communications [DISH] executives, subscribers to its DISH Network direct-to-home satellite television service in Toledo, Ohio and Augusta, Ga., will be able to receive local channels in their respective markets. Toledo...

Tariam Improves VPN-Over-Satellite Offering.
June 17, 2004... Tariam resolved some issues it was having running VPN over its DVB-S satellite offerings. The new, as- yet-unnamed product allows companies and remote users to use Tariam's entry-level satellite services to log on to their virtual private...

BAE Wins $20 Million Contract.
June 17, 2004... BAE Systems garnered a $20 million contract from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) to design a new atmospheric-sounding/coastal water-imaging instrument. The company is one of three enterprises chosen to design such a...

Intelsat Launch A Success.
June 17, 2004... International Launch Services (ILS) reported the Intelsat IS-10-02 satellite was launched into orbit successfully from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan yesterday at 6:27 p.m. EDT on a Proton M launch vehicle. The IS-10-02 satellite...

Telstar 18 Sets Sail For Launch Site.
June 17, 2004... Loral Space & Communications officials said its Space Systems/Loral-built Telstar 18 satellite has begun its journey to an equatorial launch site in preparation for a June 28 launch. The satellite will be delivered into orbit on a Sea Launch...

Zee Networks Chairman Expects Rapid Digital Growth.
June 18, 2004... Zee Networks Chairman Subhash Chandra believes the digital television market in India will experience significant growth during the next few years. He told Satellite Today, "In the next two years, digital homes both on cable and satellite will...

ViaSat Wins $47 Million U.S. Military Order.
June 18, 2004... The Space and Naval Warfare Systems Command in San Diego tapped ViaSat Inc. [VSAT] for a $47 million delivery order involving multifunctional information distribution system terminals. The order includes an undisclosed number of LVT1 airborne...

iSECUREtrac Lands 10 New GPS Deals.
June 18, 2004... iSECUREtrac (ISRE) is on a roll, recently signing contracts with lawenforcement agencies in California, Texas, Oklahoma, Illinois, Kansas, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Florida, Georgia and Virginia, bringing the total number of states using the...

U.S. Navy Buys More Raytheon Sub Communication Links.
June 18, 2004... Raytheon Co. [RTN] received a $33 million order to produce submarine high-data-rate (Sub HDR) multi-band satellite communication systems for the U.S. Navy, which has the option to up the order to $50 million. Sub HDR gives submarines...

iDirect Appoints Chan Asia/Pacific VP/Sales.
June 18, 2004... KW Chan is the new vice president of sales for the Asia/Pacific Rim region of iDirect Technologies. He brings to the company more than 23 years of experience in the telecommunications industry, most recently serving as director of northeast...

SES Astra Sets HDTV Specs, Timetable For Launch.
June 21, 2004... Officials from SES Astra, an SES Global company, said the company, together with more than 60 of its European broadcast customers, hardware manufacturers and other industry partners, agreed on the technical aspects and the timetable for the...

Stratos Launches Packet Data Service For Smaller Maritime Vessels.
June 21, 2004... Stratos Global Corp. [SGB] launched Mobile Packet Data Service (MPDS) For Fleet F33 as part of the Fleet brand of solutions it offers that use the Inmarsat satellite network for communications. Stratos is targeting smaller maritime vessels for...

NCTA's Sachs To Step Down.
June 21, 2004... President and CEO Robert Sachs has advised the National Cable and Telecommunications Association that he will not seek to renew his contract, which ends in December. He did say in a June 18 letter that he would serve into 2005 if necessary to...

Frisch's Restaurants Deploys Gilat Broadband Satellite Service.
June 21, 2004... According to Gilat Satellite Networks Ltd. [GILTF], Frisch's Restaurants Inc. tapped Gilat's U.S.-subsidiary Spacenet to provide a Connexstar broadband satellite network to 120 "Big Boy" and "Golden Corral" restaurants in Ohio, Indiana and...

Motia Secures $12 Million In Third-Round Financing.
June 21, 2004... Motia Inc., a semiconductor company that has applied its smart-antenna technology to the mobile in-vehicle satellite television market, closed a third round of funding. The round, led by Prism Venture Partners and including Intel Communications...