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In numbers: Asia's satellite industry in numbers
13 June 2014
13 June 2014: Asia's satellite industry by numbers30%The percentage average annual growth of satellite company ABS every year over the past six years. ABS (formerly known as Asia Broadcast Satellite) has two new launches - ABS-2A and ABS-3A - planned for this year and next, and has additional satellites on its radar for the following two to three years. The coming launches follow ABS-2A, which went up in February this year. US$178.5 millionThe cap set on Thai satellite operator Thaicom's investment in the new Thaicom-8 satellite, which is scheduled to launch in the first half of 2016. Authorities have given Thaicom the go-ahead to launch the new satellite, which follows the launch of Thaicom-6 in January this year and Thaicom-7 later this year.9/14The month Measat and a slew of channels in Asia are praying for to launch the long-awaited and much-delayed Measat-3b satellite. The new satellite carries a heavy load of hopes, dreams and wishes for powerful pay-TV platform Astro in Malaysia. 3xGlobecast has trebled its business/service supply (including OTT, playout, distribution) since it shifted to its shiny new space at Singapore's Infinite Studios/Mediapolis. Infinite Studios at Mediapolis@one-north officially opened in January this year with much government fanfare and talk about a whole new environment for powerful media partnerships and productions. Other media companies in the area include Disney, Lucasfilm, Discovery and Rewind. StarHub heads there in 2016. 4K4K's jaw-dropping clarity and buzz is way ahead of mass-market delivery and consumer take-up, most satellite bosses in Asia say. That much was evident around the World Cup, when insiders spoke about the gap between TV set manufacturers hopes, dream and sales wishes and actual ability to watch live matches in 4K. Meanwhile, the ecosystem required to pave the way for commercial 4K use continues to take top ...
13 June 2014: Asia's satellite industry by numbers30%The percentage average annual growth of satellite company ABS every year over the past six years. ABS (formerly known as Asia Broadcast Satellite) has two new launches - ABS-2A and ABS-3A - planned for this year and next, and has additional satellites on its radar for the following two to three years. The coming launches follow ABS-2A, which went up in February this year. US$178.5 millionThe cap set on Thai satellite operator Thaicom's investment in the new Thaicom-8 satellite, which is scheduled to launch in the first half of 2016. Authorities have given Thaicom the go-ahead to launch the new satellite, which follows the launch of Thaicom-6 in January this year and Thaicom-7 later this year.9/14The month Measat and a slew of channels in Asia are praying for to launch the long-awaited and much-delayed Measat-3b satellite. The new satellite carries a heavy load of hopes, dreams and wishes for powerful pay-TV platform Astro in Malaysia. 3xGlobecast has trebled its business/service supply (including OTT, playout, distribution) since it shifted to its shiny new space at Singapore's Infinite Studios/Mediapolis. Infinite Studios at Mediapolis@one-north officially opened in January this year with much government fanfare and talk about a whole new environment for powerful media partnerships and productions. Other media companies in the area include Disney, Lucasfilm, Discovery and Rewind. StarHub heads there in 2016. 4K4K's jaw-dropping clarity and buzz is way ahead of mass-market delivery and consumer take-up, most satellite bosses in Asia say. That much was evident around the World Cup, when insiders spoke about the gap between TV set manufacturers hopes, dream and sales wishes and actual ability to watch live matches in 4K. Meanwhile, the ecosystem required to pave the way for commercial 4K use continues to take top billing in industry discussions and showcases. 53Malaysian satellite operator Measat hit the 50 HD channel mark in March this year, becoming the first Asian C-Band satellite platform to reach this milestone. Another three channels were added to the Measat-3/3a platform between March and June, putting Measat's C-band HD channels at 53 moving into the second half of the year. The satellite company announced its first Asian regional C-Band HD distribution deal in 2007. 1,600Of Intelsat's 1,600 channels on three satellites - Intelsat-19, Intelsat-20, Intelsat-21 - almost 10% are HD channels, according to Terry Bleakley, Intelsat's regional vice president of Asia Pacific sales. And demand for capacity to carry HD services is growing, which is one of the region's major growth drivers in 2014. The conversion from standard- to high-definition is listed by most satellite bosses in Asia as one of the major forces in the satellite industry in Asia this year.