Page 21 - AIB | The Chanel | Issue 1 2013

THE CHANNEL | ISSUE 1 2013 | 21
with satellites representing a
natural platform thanks to their
instant network availability,
bandwidth and ubiquitous
coverage, contrary to many
terrestrial networks.
The African broadcast market is
moving fast, with the launch of
new pay‐TV platforms, the
transition to Digital Terrestrial
Television (DTT) and the
emergence of HD. We know from
our experience with analogue
switch‐off in European markets
that satellite is vital for achieving a
fully digital broadcast
environment: first for delivering
channels to national transmitter
networks and second for Direct‐to‐
Home satellite reception of DTT
channels by homes beyond range of
terrestrial networks or with poor
reception. The margin for growth in
Africa is very high and we are
already sharing our European
experience with African partners.
Is it going to be FTA or pay-TV?
What we see through the
digitisation of broadcast networks
is that terrestrial spectrum, which is
limited, is being used per country
by around 20 free‐to‐air and
principally national digital
channels, while satellite is
supporting multi‐channel and
multi‐service pay‐TV platforms.
Free‐to‐air via satellite continues to
be key for international networks
like the BBC, Al Jazeera, and CNN
whose business model is essentially
advertising‐based. In other words,
the FTA and pay models will
continue to co‐exist.
Which countries show the greatest
potential for pay-TV?
Satellite distribution, which gives a
seamless national, regional or
international network from day
one, represents a relatively small
and fixed expense for pay‐TV
platforms.
What we see via our pay‐TV
customers is that the fastest
dynamic follows economic
performance, with Kenya, Uganda,
Nigeria, Mozambique and of course
South Africa representing relatively
established markets. We will
certainly see more pay‐TV in other
regions, including Francophone
markets in sub‐Saharan Africa
which are now emerging. And we
see players putting together
innovative models. For example,
StarTimes has been using Eutelsat’s
satellites since 2010 for DVB‐T
redistribution. The platform offers
viewers over 140 channels
including seven self‐developed
channels and international brands
and recently announced sales of
1.4m set‐top‐boxes in nine
countries.
What about satellite delivery for
broadband?
This represents a huge market and
has driven us to pursue a number
of initiatives including a platform
called IPEasy for SMEs and
residential users. This is a Ku‐band
platform operated on our Eutelsat
16A satellite and providing
broadband services that can be
bundled with reception of TV
channels from the same satellite for
triple play.
This step also responds to how
consumers are progressively
watching TV. Satellite broadband
can distribute content via a Wi‐Fi
hot spot to small devices like tablets
and laptops. In addition to the
family TV set, viewers can watch
content on low‐energy tablets.
Data services which include
broadband for enterprises and
public agencies is one of the sectors
where we see particularly sustained
growth. Euroconsult estimates that
around 65,000 VSAT terminals are
installed in Africa today and that
this will rise to 230,000 by 2021
which means that the market will
double every five years. When you
travel in Africa you can see that the
banking industry, for example, is
gaining in structure in rural areas
and of course satellite is an efficient
and cost‐effective connectivity
solution. The same applies for oil
and gas, retailing, telemedicine and
distance‐learning.
What's behind the Eutelsat Star
Awards?
The starting point for this
competition are MultiChoice’s 1,000
Resource Centres. These are
community centres equipped with
satellite reception to receive e‐
learning programmes. Even with
more bandwidth coming to Africa
in the coming years, the benefits of
digital services will only be fully
unlocked in rural areas if there are
enough application developers,
engineers, installers and
technicians. Together with
MultiChoice Africa, we came up
with the idea of a competition for
secondary and high students to
stimulate interest for science and
technology. We were amazed at the
number of entries we received ‐ 800
in our first year and 1,100 in our
second year. We think that through
this competition – which runs at
national levels and across the
continent – we can find some
brilliant brains that will in the
future support the development of
the continent.
What's on your wishlist?
We have just completed the launch
of two satellites, and both have
capacity for Africa. Another three,
to be launched between now and
2015, will also provide capacity
over Africa. As a child of Africa,
where I lived to the age of 12, my
dream is to have all these satellites
filled with services benefiting
economic and social development
in Africa. With the new Eutelsat
70B satellite we can connect Europe
and Asia directly into Africa. We
can provide backhauling to allow
school children to access the
fantastic world of the internet. Our
wish is to see Africa connected to
the rest of the world and to be part
of this connected Africa.
Francesco Cataldo, thank you.
▼
Astronaut
Patrick Baudry
chaired the Star
Awards
▼ Below Star
Awardswinners at
Thales Alenia
Space
Bottom
Francesco Cataldo
ww
w.eutelsat.com
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