Eutelsat strikes new deals with RSCC, Tricolor TV

Satellite operator Eutelsat has struck a new 15-year deal witih Russian satellite operator RSCC to lease 19 Ku-band transponders on the forthcoming Express-AT1 satellite to serve the Russian market.

Express-AT1 is due to launch at the end of this year and will be placed at 56° East. Eutelsat previously signed deals to lease capacity at 140° East from this year and 36° East from 2015.

Eutelsat said the deals, covering three positions, would provide full coverage of the Russian Federation, from the Baltic to the Pacific, enabling RSCC and Eutelsat to expand the digital infrastructure provided to leading broadcast clients that include NTV+ and Tricolor TV.

Eutelsat has also signed a deal with RSCC to take capacity on the Eutelsat 36C/Express-AMU1 satellite to be located at 36° East, equipped with 70 Ku- and Ka-band transponders, covering European Russia and sub-Saharan Africa. Eutelsat has agreed a 15-year lease for 16 Ku-band transoponders.

This capacity, together with 18 Ka-band transponders on Eutelsat 36C, capacity on Express-AT1 at 56° East and Express-AT2 at 140° East will be commercialised by Eutelsat International Ltd., a new subsidiary set up to serve the Russian market. Nikolay Orlov, Eutelsat’s regional vice-president for Russia and Ukraine, has been appointed CEO of Eutelsat International.

Tricolor TV, the leading Russian DTH provider, has signed a multi-year deal with Eutelsat to take 16  transponders on Express-AT1 and Express-AT2 to reach homes in Siberia and the Far East of Russia from the first quarter of next year.

Tricolor TV plans to launch an expanded package of digital and HD channels at 56° East and to launch a new package of channels at 140° East.