20 February 2014
Khalid Ahmed Balkheyour, Chief Executive Officer, Arabsat, has been named Via Satellite’s Satellite Executive of the Year for 2013. In his role as CEO, Balkheyour has developed and directed the Middle East satellite operator which continues to gain ground as the regional industry leader.
The past 12 months resulted in another banner year for the company, the centrepiece of which was a deal to acquire Greek satellite operator Hellas-Sat, enabling the operator to become more of a presence in Europe. Crucially, Arabsat will now be able to offer Middle East broadcasters more of a gateway into Europe, and the deal takes the company outside of its Middle East home turf and creates a more multi-faceted regional operator. The acquisition accelerates top line growth of Arabsat by more than ten percent, and new satellites, Hellas-sat-3 and Hellas-sat-4, will boost top line growth still further. It is a deal that underlines Balkheyour’s ambition to grow one of the most powerful regional operators — globally.
What is most impressive about Balkheyour’s tenure is his creative deal-making, which has pioneered hosted payload deals in the region, including a contract with Emerging Market Communications (EMC) for a Ka-band hosted payload. In 2013, Arabsat signed a number of significant contracts, including agreements with Qatari satellite operator, Es’hailSat, which will see the Es’hailSat 2 satellite join Arabsat’s BADR fleet at 26 degrees East. Another major contract was signed with ‘My HD’ which plans to bring around 50 HD channels to households across the Middle East. Arabsat also signed an MoU agreement with the Saudi Ministry of Culture and Information to build a new media platform in Saudi Arabia.
Arabsat’s numbers are also highly impressive, with the company set to achieve double-digit growth in both revenues and profits in 2013. It has the stated ambition of becoming the fifth ranked global FSS operator by 2020, which given its impressive growth in recent years seems well within reach.
The Arabsat story once again showcases the power of regional operators, and in this area, Arabsat has few peers. From strong financial performance, innovative deals, as well as a potential game-changing acquisition for the company, Arabsat continues to tick every box for a regional operator, and it is of little surprise that Arabsat CEO Khalid Balkheyour has once again been nominated to be the 2013 Satellite Executive of the Year.
“Khalid Balkheyour has built Arabsat into a regional powerhouse in the MENA region,” said Mark Holmes, Editorial Director, Aerospace. “Over the last few years, Balkheyour has been a perennial nominee for this award, and it is not hard to understand why. The company has shown fantastic revenue and profit growth, is a leader in terms of HD/DTH in the Middle East, and is fast becoming one of the top regional operators around. 2013 was another great year for the company with the acquisition of Hellas-Sat in Greece and a new partnership deal with fellow Middle East operator, Es’hailSat, as two of the highlights. Arabsat is just continually excellent in everything it does, and we are delighted that finally Khalid Balkheyour is our Satellite Executive of the Year for 2013. It is richly deserved.”
“We are extremely grateful for this wonderful award from Via Satellite, and for the recognition of our accomplishments,” said Khalid Balkheyour. “This recognition comes at a time of great success for the company, as we continue to position ourselves as a regional and global leader in this dynamic industry. Naturally, this success could not happen without the support of our loyal customers, dedicated employees and shareholders, and we would like to thank them for helping us to become the fastest growing satellite operator in the region.”
For more than 20 years, Via Satellite magazine has been honoring the satellite executives who made a lasting business impact on the global satellite market during the previous calendar year.
Via Satellite magazine will showcase Balkheyour in its “Satellite Executive of the Year” cover feature in the March issue. Balkheyour will be presented with his award at the Satellite Executive of the Year award luncheon on Wednesday, March 12, and a reception that will be held that evening. Both events take place during the SATELLITE 2014 Conference and Exhibition, which runs March 10-13 at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center at 801 Mount Vernon Place, NW, Washington, DC. For more information or to register, visit www.SATELLITE2014.com. (Source: Arabsat press release)
20 February 2014
Channel NewsAsia is presenting a series of programmes relating to Singapore Budget 2014 in the week immediately after it is shared with the public. The Budget Statement will be delivered in Parliament on Friday, 21 February 2014 by Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance Tharman Shanmugaratnam.
This is broadcast ”live” over Channel NewsAsia. In the week following this, the channel is producing a slate of programmes to help viewers understand the measures announced, their impact on the economy, businesses, households and individuals.
A summary of the lineup of programmes is as follows:
Singapore Budget 2014 “Live”
21 February 2014, Friday, 3:30pm (Sin/HK/MNL time)
A “live” broadcast of the Singapore Budget Statement 2014 from Parliament. There will be Mandarin translation on dual sound mode, and over MediaCorp radio on 938Live. It will also be available on channelnewsasia.com and via Toggle, an interactive content repository by MediaCorp.
Singapore Tonight: Budget Special
21 February 2014, Friday, 10-11pm (Sin/HK/MNL time)
In a special hour-long edition, Singapore Tonight presents a wrap of the top issues from Singapore Budget 2014 and reactions from various analysts and Singaporeans.
Money Mind
23 February 2014, Sunday, 9:30pm (Sin/HK/MNL time)
This episode of Money Mind gives a detailed analysis into Singapore Budget 2014 and looks at its impact on the economy and Singapore-based companies.
Singapore Budget 2014 – Ask the Finance Minister
24 February 2014, Monday, 8-9pm (Sin/HK/MNL time)
An exclusive “live” forum with Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance Tharman Shanmugaratnam where he will address questions from business owners, industry leaders and Singaporeans.
The Budget and You
25 February 2014, Tuesday, 8-8:30pm (Sin/HK/MNL time)
This special programme breaks down the details to show how this year’s Budget would affect Singaporeans from different walks of life.
20 February 2014
SES S.A. announced today that it has selected Airbus Defence and Space (formerly known as Astrium) to build its latest communications satellite, SES-10. The satellite will significantly grow SES’s capacity to serve the thriving markets of Latin America. Financial details are not being disclosed.
The new satellite – ordered through SES’s wholly-owned subsidiary SES Satellite Leasing – will expand SES’s capabilities in Latin America and the Caribbean through high power beams tailored to provide direct-to-home broadcasting, enterprise and broadband connectivity services in the entire region. SES-10’s comprehensive coverage includes Mexico, Central America and South America, as well as the Caribbean. The satellite will be positioned at the 67 degrees West orbital position, pursuant to an agreement between the Andean Community (Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru) and SES, which provides for use of the Andean Community’s Simon Bolivar 2 satellite network. The specifically designed beam of SES-10 over the Andean Community Member States, combined with its optimum elevation angle, represents a unique proposition for telecommunications operators, broadcasters and service providers for the Andean countries.
SES-10 is slated for launch on board a SpaceX Falcon 9 launch vehicle. With 50 high-power Ku-band transponders, the satellite will provide replacement capacity for the current satellites, AMC-3 and AMC-4, as well as incremental capacity at the 67 degrees West slot. SES has been providing key services to customers in the region from this orbital slot since 2010.
SES-10 will be built by Airbus Defence and Space based on its highly reliable Eurostar E3000 platform. The satellite is designed to operate for 15 years in geosynchronous orbit, utilizing an electric plasma propulsion system for on-orbit manoeuvres and a chemical system for initial orbit raising and some on-orbit manoeuvres. SES-10 will have an electrical power of 13kW and its launch mass on Falcon 9 is expected to be about 5,300 kilograms. The satellite will also fly Flexible Command Receivers, whose frequency agility provides for more robust satellite command link operations.
SES-10 is the 10th spacecraft that SES has ordered from Airbus Defence and Space.
States Romain Bausch, President and CEO of SES: “We are pleased to work once again with our longstanding supplier Airbus Defence and Space on the SES-10 mission. SES-10 will provide our customers in Latin America with new, high power satellite capacity for multiple applications at an established orbital slot. We are delighted to broaden our partnership with the Andean Community with a satellite built specifically for use in the Simon Bolivar 2 satellite network, offering opportunities for expanded commercial, economic and social benefits for the Andean region.”
“This new contract is a significant win for Airbus Defence and Space and further reinforces our long-standing relationship with SES, which has today asked us to build their 10th Eurostar satellite,” said François Auque, Head of Space Systems. “This order also demonstrates our customers’ faith in our electrical propulsion technology for station-keeping, a technology that we are among the few in the world to be able to demonstrate in orbit, something we have now been doing for 10 years.” (Source: Press release)
19 February 2014
Just days ahead of the Mobile World Congress, Euronews confirms its leading position on the international news market as a pioneer, adapting its content to new trends in news consumption: Euronews is the first news source to be launched worldwide that supports Sony SmartWatch2.
Michael Peters, CEO of Euronews said:
“Innovation is at the heart of the strategy of Euronews, as a global media group offering the right content, to the right place, at the right time, I’m convinced this is the “smart” way to expand both our reach and our awareness worldwide in such a competitive market. Wearable devices perfectly answer one of our essential needs: to facilitate access to information for everyone in the world. Any connected screen is an opportunity to reach our audience. At Euronews, we all are proud to support such a powerful brand as Sony which has recognized both the editorial and product design qualities of Euronews’ offer.”
“Once again, Euronews reinforces its leadership as a pioneer and expert in adapting content to new habits of news consumption, on any connected screens.” added Peters.
Euronews on Sony Smartwatch 2
Made for Android, the Sony SmartWatch 2 is the world’s first watch that is compatible with all Android mobile phones and interacts with them over Bluetooth.
Euronews connects its free Euronews Express application to the device. Every user can now receive Breaking News Alerts sent by the journalists of the international newsroom of Europe’s leading news channel. This Alert service is available in English or French for the moment.
Euronews will bring further improvements to the app. Alerts will be available in all 13 language services* and users will be able to fully customize their Alert experience.
* Arabic, English, French, German, Greek, Hungarian, Italian, Persian, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, Turkish and Ukrainian
(Source: Press Release)
19 February 2014
Tomorrow (February 20th 2014) twenty journalists working for the Al Jazeera Network are due to go on trial in Cairo accused of belonging to or assisting a “terrorist organisation”.
The International News Safety Institute (INSI) – which for more than a decade has supported the safe working of journalists around the world – believes the Egyptian authorities are profoundly mistaken in bringing these charges to court and urges they be dropped.
It is the responsibility of independent journalists to seek to report a wide range of views and to report all sides of a conflict. This should not be confused with political action. A number of those held are personally known to INSI member organisations or have worked for them in the past and Al Jazeera is a key supporter of INSI. We believe all of those held to be committed to the principles of free speech.
Egypt’s action in arresting and charging journalists on political grounds casts doubt on the country’s commitment to democracy and free speech and to the principles of a free media.
We urge that all of those held should be released – regardless of nationality – and allowed to pursue their legitimate work.
The Board of the International News Safety Institute.
Richard Sambrook, Cardiff University
Richard Tait, Cardiff School of Journalism
Salim Amin, Africa 24 Media
Alison Bethel McKenzie, International Press Institute
Michael Christie, Thomson Reuters
Jeff Dubin, European Broadcasting Union
Chris Elliott, The Guardian
Takehiko Kusaba, NHK
Marcelo Moreira, TV Globo
Jonathan Munro, BBC
Deborah Rayner, CNN
Amy Selwyn, Storytegic
Fran Unsworth, BBC
Monique Villa, Thomson Reuters Foundation
Jon Williams, ABC
Hannah Storm, INSI
Source: Press Release
18 February 2014
The North American Broadcasters Association (NABA) has announced its new executive team. Robert J. Ross, CBS’ SVP of East Coast Operations has been appointed by the NABA Board of Directors as President. Mr. Ross takes over the role from Robert Briskman, Technical Executive for Sirius XM Radio who served as NABA President since 2012.
Mr. Ross comes to the NABA Presidency at a time of ongoing change for the broadcasting industry and with it an array of new challenges and opportunities regarding how broadcasting is distributed to a digital multi-platform world. As a longstanding member of the NABA Board of Directors and Executive, he has developed a great appreciation for the rapid pace of change and innovation at work in the NABA community.
“Bob has had a tremendous impact on our industry and is well known for making things work and getting the trains to run on time. When we call Bob a “Fixer” it is with great respect and considerable awe. Bob understands the industry issues and I look forward to his leadership along with his NABA Executive team over the next two years.” said Michael McEwen, Director General NABA.
Mr. Ross oversees all East Coast operations and engineering for the CBS Television Network and has worked for 37 years in all areas of broadcast engineering. He was elected into the 2009 class of the Broadcasting & Cable Hall of Fame and is the past chair of the Toolkit working group of the Media Security and Reliability Council (MSRC). He is also a Fellow of the Society of Motion Picture & Television Engineers (SMPTE), and a member of the Society of Broadcast Engineers.
John Lee, Executive Director, Media Technology Services, CBC/Radio-Canada and Richard Friedel, EVP & GM, Fox Networks Engineering & Operations, Fox Entertainment Group were also named as Vice-Presidents.
The NABA Board of Directors appointed the new executive at their Annual General Meeting Event held on February 12, 2014 at HBO in New York City. (Source: Press Release)
