SES NEW SKIES, an SES company (Paris:SESG) (LuxX:SESG), announced
today that FRANCE 24 is now broadcasting across Africa on the NSS-7
satellite located at the orbital position of 338 degrees East.
FRANCE 24, a free and unencrypted 24/7 international news channel
offering a French perspective on world events, selected SES NEW SKIES'
NSS-7 satellite to efficiently reach new television audiences across
Africa. NSS-7 is the primary satellite for video distribution in
Africa, and 338 degrees East has a significant legacy as a strong,
diverse and thriving African programme neighbourhood comprising
French, English, Arabic and Portuguese language content and is a key
gateway to reaching pan-african audiences.
FRANCE 24's English and French channels are broadcast on the
GlobeCast platform on NSS-7's East hemi C-band beam, which offers
coverage of Europe, the Middle East and all of Africa. The exact
transmission parameters are: Transponder EHL7/ERL7, 4055 MHz, right
hand circular polarization.
FRANCE 24 is 50/50 owned by broadcasters TF1 and France
Televisions and offers in-depth analysis of current events with a view
of ensuring greater pluralism in a multi-faceted world. Targeting an
audience of opinion leaders around the world, FRANCE 24 is deploying a
multilingual strategy. The channel currently broadcasts via satellite
in French, English and Arabic across Europe, the Middle East and
Africa and has ambitions to launch a Spanish-language version as well
as plans to further extend its worldwide reach.
About NSS-7
NSS-7 is a powerful, state-of-the-art Ku-band and C-band satellite
located at 338 degrees East over the Atlantic Ocean. The satellite
provides optimized coverage and power for the Americas, Europe, Africa
and the Middle East for video, data, Internet and Government services.
As the leading satellite for transatlantic video traffic and the
primary satellite for video distribution across the whole of Africa,
NSS-7 highlights include:
-- Home to a DTH platform with 35 channels and an estimated
100,000 subscribers;
-- Potential reach of more than 20 million homes representing 82
million people in 40 nations across Africa;
-- Positioned at 338 degrees East, one of the leading locations
for full-time and OU/SNG feeds.
About SES NEW SKIES
SES NEW SKIES is an SES company (Paris:SESG) (LuxX:SESG) offering
satellite communication services to a range of customers including
telecommunications providers, broadcasters, corporations and
governments around the world. SES NEW SKIES operates a global fleet of
seven satellites in orbit, with two additional spacecraft under
construction (NSS-9 and NSS-12) and ground facilities around the
world. Headquartered in The Hague, the company has offices in Beijing,
Hong Kong, Johannesburg, Sao Paulo, Singapore, Sydney and Washington,
D.C. In addition to SES NEW SKIES, SES wholly owns the market-leading
satellite operators SES ASTRA in Europe and SES AMERICOM in North
America and also holds strategic participations in SES Sirius in
Europe, Ciel in Canada and Quetzsat in Mexico. SES provides
outstanding satellite communications solutions via a global fleet of
37 satellites in 25 orbital locations. Further information on the
company is available at www.ses-newskies.com and on SES at www.ses.com
About FRANCE 24:
FRANCE 24 is the first French international news channel that
offers a French perspective and sensibility on world events. It
broadcasts on a 24/7 basis on three channels, in French, English and
Arabic, in Europe, the Middle East, Africa and on the east coast of
the U.S.
FRANCE 24 can be accessed by cable, satellite and DSL. The website
www.france24.com is available in 3 languages (English, French,
Arabic).