RRsat Global Communications Network Ltd. a rapidly growing provider of comprehensive content management and global distribution services to the television and radio broadcasting industries, has launched a new platform on the Galaxy 19 (G-19) satellite that enables the distribution of television and radio channels devoted to religious programming. The new platform, together with RRsat’s three other platforms already operating on this satellite, will broadcast more than 50 religious and ethnic TV and radio channels, reaching millions of homes across the United States, and represents a major step in RRsat’s program to distribute content within the Americas originating in the Americas.
The Galaxy 19 satellite, located at 97degreesW, is one of the largest ethnic video platforms in the U.S. offering programmers and content distributors access to millions of homes in the U.S. cable community. RRsat has signed agreements with thirteen TV and radio channels to be broadcast on its new Galaxy 19 platform directly from RRsat’s Hawley Teleport in Pennsylvania. Channels already launched include the Three Angels Broadcasting Network (3ABN), which also use RRsat’s services for global distribution, the three Hope channels: Hope Channel, Esperanza TV, and Hope Church channel; and Loma Linda Broadcasting Networks Inc., which broadcasts on Galaxy 19 in English, Arabic and Chinese and uses RRsat’s distribution services to North America, Asia, Africa and Australia.
3ABN, LLBN and the Adventist Television Network channels are all major Christian television and radio networks in the United States offering a full range of religious content and programming. Their presence on this platform is representative of the increase in content being distributed by RRsat’s Hawley Teleport in which both the source and the destination is North America.
“Interest in religious programming and content is on the rise in the United States,” commented Lior Rival, Vice President, Sales and Marketing of RRsat. “By positioning ourselves as a provider of global distribution for all types of religious content, we believe we can further penetrate this important market and become a leading distribution solution for this programming. Moreover, this launch represents another significant step in our penetration of the America-to-America market.”