November 2014

Skybox Imaging satellites SkySat 1 on the left and SkySat 2 on the right. Photo: Business Wire [Via Satellite 11-12-2014] MacDonald Dettwiler and Associates (MDA) is optimistic it can capture new business in the small satellite market through its subsidiary Space Systems Loral (SSL). In February 2014 Skybox Imaging partnered with SSL to build 13…

[Via Satellite 11-12-14] Avanti has unveiled its new education service, Avanti Connected Education, which will deliver Internet-enabled learning to thousands of children in Africa. The service seeks to improve the education of these children by connecting their schools with high-speed satellite Internet. Additionally, Avanti seeks to create a model where communities can generate revenue to…

[Via Satellite 11-12-14] Onlime has signed a new contract with Romantis to purchase the latest generation satellite services hub to be installed at the Onlime teleport near Hameln in Germany. The Romantis UHP platform will be the core to expand Onlime’s service portfolio and address the networking requirements of its enterprise customers. Onlime teleport. Photo: Onlime…

Mini-VSAT Broadband Coverage in Ku-band and C-band. Photo: KVH [Via Satellite 11-12-14] KVH Industries has significantly increased the capacity for its mini-VSAT Broadband network. The expanded capacity on key South American beams has resulted in as much as three times the forward and return link capacity for KVH’s maritime VSAT customers in the area, according…

S4120 VSAT terminal. Photo: Advantech Wireless [Via Satellite 11-12-14] Advantech Wireless announced that its S4120 VSAT terminal has been selected by a major government services organization in Latin America to support multiple services including enterprise, critical infrastructure, communications on the move, 3G and 4G mobile backhaul, and broadband access. The S4120 VSAT terminals are DVB-RCS…

[Via Satellite 11-12-14] Raga Sat has gone live on O3b Networks’ Fiber in the Sky satellite network. The Democratic Republic of Congo-based service provider is the first African client to be brought up on the O3b network since it started commercial operations earlier in the year. Raga Sat is a central African provider of satellite…

Thuraya Headquarters. Photo: Thuraya [Via Satellite 11-11-2014] Thuraya Telecommunications Company, the Middle East based MSS operator, is targeting growth from many verticals going forward including maritime and new markets such as the “connected car,” where it believes satellite technology can play a strong role. At its Thuraya Product Development Forum last week in Dubai, key…

O3b Texas gateway. Photo: O3b Networks. [Via Satellite 11-11-2014] O3b Networks has created a new offshore communications service O3bEnergy 20 for energy sector customers in the Gulf of Mexico. The service provides an aggregate of 20 Mbps throughput to a single site with latency of less that 150 milliseconds round trip using 1.2-meter O3bEnergy antennas.…

Ebola awareness posters in West Africa. Photo: UNICEF [Via Satellite 11-11-2014] SES has initiated broadcasts of an Ebola-focused education channel called “Fight Ebola” on its Astra 2F and SES 5 satellites. The channel is available for both Free-to-Air (FTA) and pay-TV viewers in West Africa, and is dedicated to providing an understanding of the disease…

Photo: Fransat [Via Satellite 11-11-2014] Eutelsat has added the Video-on-Demand (VOD) service MYTF1VOD to its French satellite TV platform Fransat. The company broadcasts 25 French Digital Terrestrial Television (DTT) channels, France 3’s 24 regional channels, and several others subscription-free from the Eutelsat 5 West A satellite. MYTF1VOD is included in the latest version of Fransat…