News Analysis

Dish raising $2.3 billion for 4G strategy

Englewood, Colo., April 3, 2013--Dish Network Corp. is offering up to US $2.3 billion in senior notes in order to have funds for its 4G goals according to analysts.. Dish said on Wednesday it was offering $1.1 billion aggregate principal amount of 5.125% senior notes due 2020 and another US  $1.2 billion aggregate principal amount of 4.250% senior notes due 2018. Dish said the 2020 and the 2018 notes will be issued at an issue price of 100%.

Content Owners Buying Encoders to Bypass Traditional Pay TV Distributors, According to ABI Research

Scottsdale, Ariz., April 3, 2013--Content owners, including HBO, Disney/ABC, and Fox are rapidly growing in importance as customers for video encoder and transcoders. Content owners have always purchased some video encoders for primary distribution – which feed into existing Pay TV systems; however, their investment is increasingly in multi-format transcoders that support direct to consumer distribution.

The Switch Acquires HTN

New York, NY, March 26, 2013 — Fiber distribution service provider The Switch has acquired substantially all of the assets and operations of HTN Communications, LLC (HTN), a provider of sports television and radio distribution services in North America.

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Google and Netflix et al Reconfigure the Internet in Bid for Global Content Market Dominance

Google, Amazon, Netflix, Microsoft prepare ground for global ambitions

London, UK – March 25, 2013 – The Internet content delivery market will undergo huge changes over the next decade as major telcos and Internet giants, including Google, Amazon, Netflix and Microsoft, wrangle over the continuing over-the-top (OTT) Internet traffic content boom, according to a new Informa Telecoms & Media report Internet Innovation.

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Globalstar Posts Net Loss of $112.2 million in 2012

Covinton, La., March 20, 2013 — Mobile satellite voice and data services provider Globalstar has reported that its fourth quarter revenues rose 10 percent from the year before to US$19.12 million while service revenue increased to US$15.3 million from US$13.6 million the year earlier.

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World Government Expenditures for Space Facing Short-Term Decline

Despite a challenging marketplace, new and emerging leaders display high-growth opportunities

Paris, France, March 18, 2013 – According to Euroconsult's newly released research report,Government Space Markets, World Prospects to 2022, government spending on space reached a peak in 2012 of $72.9 billion, a non-negligible increase compared to 2011 which followed two consecutive years of minimal growth. This upswing is attributed to increased activity of countries such as Russia, China, India and new world or regional leaders who compensated for budget uncertainties affecting North America and Europe. Euroconsult expects global government expenditures on space to decrease due to fiscal policies exerting continuous pressure on public finances; improvement is not expected before 2015.

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C-Com Post Eight Consecutive Profitable Year

Ottawa, Canada, March 14, 2013 — Canada’s manufacturer of mobile auto-deploying satellite antenna systems, C-COM Satellite Systems Inc., announced on Thursday that the company continued to post eight consecutive profitable year although net profit for 2012 dropped by 29%.

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World Teleport Association Publishes Satellite Operator Benchmarks 2013

New York City, March 13, 2013– The World Teleport Association today released Satellite Operator Benchmarks 2013, the third annual WTA global study. The study tracks, rates, and compares the operational and commercial performance of satellite operators, as experienced by teleport operators. The objective of the annual study, now in its third year, is to strengthen the global industry by encouraging self-improvement among all operating companies.

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Energy Markets in Midst of Bandwidth Revolution

Cambridge, Mass. March 12, 2013 – According to NSR’s Energy Markets via Satellite, 3rd Edition report released today, Energy Markets are in the midst of a bandwidth revolution that will positively affect satellite companies over the next decade. More applications at  more remote locations continue to drive demand for satellite services, and Oil & Gas, Mining, and Utility end-users will demand over 25 Gbps of satellite capacity by 2022. 

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Managing Transponder Resources

by Jan Grøndrup-Vivanco

Paris, France, March 5, 2013--For most satellite service providers and teleports, satellite capacity is the single largest Operating Expense (OPEX) cost item and is therefore key to their profitability. This is traditionally also one of the most difficult cost elements to manage, especially for service providers who provide data services for VSAT and trunking.