Ukraine’s Lybid TV launches on Eutelsat

Ukrainian pay-TV platform Lybid TV has made a full commercial launch on Eutelsat Communications’ Eutelsat 36B satellite.

Lybid has signed a multi-year lease for two transponders on the Eutelsat satellite, giving it direct-to-home reach in the Ukraine.

The firm is broadcasting around 50 digital channels, including national Ukrainian stations, premium sport channels like Football, Football +, Sport-1 and Sport-2, as well as European and Russian brands such as Travel Channel, Tiji, Gulli and Universal Channel.

Until the end of the year, the platform is available for a three-year subscription of US$15 for homes equipped with 60cm antennas, said Eutelsat.

“Satellite is one of the fastest routes to multi-channel viewing in the Ukraine which counts over 17 million TV homes. Eutelsat’s most recent audience survey recorded more than three million satellite homes at the end of 2012, up from two million in 24 months,” said Nicolay Orlov, Eutelsat’s regional vice-president for the Ukraine and Russia.

“The launch of Lybid increases both quality and choice for Ukrainian TV viewers and sets the scene for faster adoption of digital services across the country,” he added.