BT Broadcast Services, the broadcast and media solutions arm of BT, and SES ASTRA have announced a long-term cooperation contract to promote ASTRA at 19.2° East to independent satellite broadcasters. BTBS will provide the ground segment of the package – including multiplexing and uplink from Paris or London – and SES ASTRA the space segment, through capacity on the ASTRA 1G spacecraft.
The ASTRA Satellite System at 19.2° East provides access to the largest digital satellite audience in Europe, with 10.4 million homes receiving direct-to-home transmissions, and a further 57.9 million through cable. Through this offer, independent free-to-air and ethnic channels new to the ASTRA Satellite System will be able to tap this steadily increasing audience at very attractive rates.
Broadcasters who sign up will benefit from a feature-rich service that includes:
Variable bandwidth from 2Mb/s up to 33Mb/s;
Video flexibility – service can accept SD video and audio as DVB ASI, uncompressed SDI or analogue in any formats.
The latest generation, high quality MPEG 2 compression equipment that can support channels at 2.5Mb/s.
24-hour monitoring to ensure troubleshooting in case of difficulties – plus Internet-based monitoring for customers
Presence in the ASTRA Mosaic – ASTRA’s electronic programme guide (EPG)
In addition to the above, there are a number of premium services, including standards conversion between NTSC and PAL, time shifting to allow repurposing of content between time zones and seamless bit rate conversion as well as a conditional access solution that includes encryption, smart card distribution, authorisation and de-authorisation. Through its global digital network, BT can also help broadcasters get their feeds to the Paris or London uplink if required.