US DTH operator DirecTV is bringing in Astrium to build yet another satellite for Brazil in time for the Olympic Games in 2016.
The new bird will boast up to 60 Ku-band transponders to target the country’s expected surge in demand for services…
US DTH operator DirecTV is bringing in Astrium to build yet another satellite for Brazil in time for the Olympic Games in 2016.
The new bird will boast up to 60 Ku-band transponders to target the country’s expected surge in demand for services including HDTV.
Eric Béranger, CEO of Astrium Satellites, said the deal highlights the popularity of the French manufacturer’s E3000 platform, which has clocked more than 480 years of operation in orbit.
Astrium is also building the Intelsat-32 satellite that will host DirecTV’s SKY Brasil-1 payload for the country.
That satellite recently struck a deal with France’s Arianespace to be launched in Q3 2016, whereas DirecTV’s latest order aims to be placed before this at the start of the year.
DirecTV has operations across Latin America, but it expects Brazil to deliver the most growth because of the country’s historically low pay-TV penetration.
Indeed, the allure of emerging market potential has prompted investments from a number of players.
DirecTV faces competition from the likes of Mexican telecoms giant America Movil and Spain’s Telefonica.
Local telco GVT has also recently forged a pay-TV joint venture with US satellite operator EchoStar – a sister company of DirecTV’s arch rival Dish Network.
Meanwhile, a nascent state-owned Brazilian operator called Visiona Tecnologia Espacial, a JV between local aircraft manufacturer Embraer and incumbent telco Telebras, plans to launch a Ka-band satellite in 2016.
