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Sat-Na Monday July 21, 1997
Sat-Na
July, 21
1997
Cancom Files an Application to Distribute Euronews
Cancom has filed an application with the CRTC for a
licence to broadcast the multilingual European news network,
Euronews, across Canada.
Euronews continuously broadcasts all world news events
as seen from a European perspective. The channel transmits
simultaneously in five languages: French, English, German,
Italian and Spanish. Through exchanges with the major news
agencies, such as WTN, APTV and Reuters TV, among others,
the network has access to a vast quantity of footage from
all over the world.
Euronews broadcasts three in-depth news reports
morning, noon and evening with news flashes on the half
hour. It also offers specialty magazines dealing mainly
with economic, political and social affairs but also reports
on science, arts and culture, the environment, health,
fashion, travel, leisure activities and sports, with a
variety and openness stemming from its European vocation.
Interest In Comstream Prompt Spar
Spar has engaged an investment banking firm to advise
the company on its strategic alternatives for its San Diego,
California communications subsidiary, ComStream.
``Spar has received a number of expressions of interest
regarding ComStream,'' said Colin D. Watson, President and
Chief Executive Officer, Spar. ``Because we owe it to our
shareholders to ensure that the value of their investment is
being maximized, we engaged Alex.Brown to advise us with
regard to these inquiries and help us to determine how best
to realize ComStream's potential.''
Strategic alternatives could include a merger with or
sale to another company or continued activities by Spar to
grow the business significantly.
Website address: www.spar.ca.
IRIDIUM Loses A Satellite
Iridium is reporting that it has lost communications
with one of its IRIDIUM satellites. The satellite, one of
five launched July 9, 1997, was in a parking orbit awaiting
its ascent to final mission orbit. The other 16 satellites
orbiting the earth continue to function within normal
parameters.
Iridium said that the anomaly is not expected to impact
the scheduled date for commercial service in September 1998
since each of the six orbital planes will contain an on-
orbit spare satellite.
UAE to Launch First Mobile Phone Satellite for
The United Arab Emirates next month will announce the
winner of a contract to launch the first mobile telephone
satellite in the Middle East region.
Aerospatiale of France and the U.S. firms Hughes and
Lockheed are the three bidders under consideration. The cost
of building and launching the Thuraya satellite is estimated
at around US$50 million The satellite, to be launched in
2000, will cover the India subcontinent, Iran, Pakistan,
Turkey, the Middle East and North Africa.
Antennas America, Inc.
Antennas America has been licensed by DIRECTV to use
the DSS trademark on the Company's new FREEDOM Antenna
system.
The FREEDOM Antenna is a flat VHF/UHF over-the-air
antenna that conforms to the back of an 18" satellite dish.
The antenna fits on the back of the RCA, Toshiba, Eurosat,
Uniden, Hughes Network Systems, GE, and ProScan 18"
satellite dishes.
The Company also has recently introduced a new antenna
that will attach to the back of the Sony and
Phillips/Magnavox 18" dishes. Both antennas can be used
when a mid-range antenna is required, usually within 25
miles from the over-the-air transmitter site.
If access to an already installed 18" satellite dish is
difficult or is in an unfavourable position for over-the-air
antennas, AA sells the WALLDO Antenna as an alternative.
This antenna is a flat over-the-air antenna system and can
be installed on a chimney, eave or roof of a house and can
be painted to match the house.
The Internet comes to DSS
Hughes Network Systems has announced DirecDuo-- a
single, 21-inch elliptical satellite dish capable of
delivering both the 400 kbps Turbo Internet service from
DirecPC and the 200-plus channels of digital satellite
television available from DIRECTV and USSB. DirecDuo is
available now at major retail chains and from independent
dealers.
The antenna is capable of supporting multiple Digital
Satellite System set-top boxes for television programming,
as well as a DirecPC card installed in a computer for Turbo
Internet access. Both the TVs and the PC can be located in
different rooms on separate floors. The system uses two LNBs
to receive both services from different satellites
Existing DIRECTV and USSB customers:
An upgrade includes a DirecPC card and DirecDuo antenna
for $599. The existing 18-inch dish will need to be
replaced but the existing set-top box, regardless of its
brand will work.
Existing DirecPC customers:
The upgrade includes a enhancement to the LNB
configuration and a DSS receiver, for a total cost ranging
from $599 to $699.
The complete DirecDuo hardware/software package, ranges
in price from $899 to $999 and includes the 21-inch
elliptical dish with a "tri-mode" LNB and a universal mount,
a 16-bit PC card, Microsoft Windows `95-based software and
one of three Hughes-brand Digital Satellite System
receivers. The system also requires a Pentium based
computer.
Internet Pricing
DirecDuo has a number of price options, however, the
best value for most individuals is the new Moon Surfer II
package which provides subscribers with unlimited evening
and weekend access to Turbo Internet at speeds of up to 200
kbps for $19.95 per month (80 cents per MB from 6 a.m. to 6
p.m. weekdays). The pricing does not include a required
terrestrial ISP.
Titan Corporation joint venture
The Titan Corporation part of a consortium led by
Alcatel Telspace, a French subsidiary of Alcatel, was
selected by PT Multi Media Asia Indonesia, a joint venture
between Pasifik Satelit Nusantara and Indosat, to supply the
ground segment for Multi Media Asia Satellite
Telecommunications System (M2A). M2A is an interactive
Asian multimedia network expected ultimately to provide
telephone, fax, Internet access and television services to
approximately four million subscribers in several south east
Asian countries.
The contract awarded to the Alcatel-led consortium for
the initial phase of the system is valued at $105 million.
Titan's primary responsibility is to develop and provide
hardware and software technology to be integrated into the
subscriber terminals used in the system. Titan will share
in the initial-phase award for development activities, and
will receive royalties as well as payments for chips it
supplies for use in the build-out of the system. Other
members of the consortium include Alcatel CIT, a French
member of the Alcatel group, and Thomson Multimedia, the
French consumer electronics company.
The network is unique in that it will provide very
large telecommunications capacity via a satellite-based
infrastructure, and will set new standards of performance
for space-based systems, especially for the modems, encoders
and communications management tools on the ground.
Following the initial service roll-out in Indonesia, service
is scheduled to be added at a rapid pace to subscribers
throughout Asia. The M2A satellite, designed and produced
by Space Systems/Loral and Alcatel Espace, is scheduled for
launch in early 1999.
Time Warner Launches CNNSI.com
Time Warner has launched a comprehensive sports site on
the World Wide Web at htttp://www.cnnsi.com .
The site features sports content from CNN, Sports
Illustrated, Turner Sports and CNN/SI, the 24-hour sports
news network, and serves as the sports site for CNN
Interactive and The Pathfinder Network.
With more than 100,000 pages of content at launch,
CNNSI.com features several elements including:
" Proprietary content from Sports Illustrated
" Up-to-the minute scores, news and statistics of both
domestic and international sports.
" Free fantasy sports, starting with football shortly
after launch, for both hard-core and time-challenged fans.
" Extensive areas for international sports, such as
cricket, Formula One racing, rugby, soccer and track and
field, with an option to select a U.S. Sports or World
Sports Home Page.
" Customisable scoreboard allowing users to view the
scores of their favourite teams on the CNN/SI Home Page.
" A local sports section for more than 150 individual
cities,
" Streaming video of sports press conferences
" Women's sports section, including content from SI
Women/Sport
Upcoming Launches
Next Ariane Launch Next Atlas/Delta Launch
PAS 6 --August 7, 1997 SuperBird C-- July 25, 1997
Flight 98
Satellite PAS -6
Manufacturer Space Systems
Loral
Type FS 1300
Stabilisation 3-axis
Payload 36 Ku Band
Coverage Argentina and
Brasil
Orbital 43 East
Position
Mission DBS Service
In Brief
" TV/COM International Inc. will spin-off of the
company's Analog Business Group to form Aegis Integration
Inc. The spin-off allows TV/COM to focus its product
development, manufacturing and sales of end-to-end digital
compression systems for cable, satellite, PC and
telecommunications customers worldwide.
" Television Zanzibar (TVZ) plans to introduce more
channels and increase air time for its programs. TVZ is in
negotiations with a South African firm on establishing a
television channel to run on a commercial basis. The channel
would operate on 24-hour basis and would be delivered via
satellite.
" NEC Corporation as part of a consortium with Mitsui &
Co. Ltd. has won a contract to provide satellite earth
stations to Paraguay's Administracion Nacional de Telecom
(ANTELCO). The contract is valued at US$19 million.
" Bloomberg Television, the news and financial
information service, has begun broadcasts on the Astra 1A
satellite. The television service is now available free to
TV viewers in UK and Ireland, and can also be viewed in
Europe. The new service will form a part of the Sky digital
television package which is expected to launch in the UK in
1998.
" Wegener has received an order from Muzak Inc. for
Wegener's Digital Audio Satellite receivers. Wegener said
that it will begin shipping this order, valued in excess of
$1 million, at once. The Company said that these shipments
are expected to continue over the next 12 months.
" TCI Music Inc. and DMX Inc. have completed their
merger, following approval of DMX
shareholders at a special meeting.
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