November 2015

OmniAccess satellite dishes. Photo: OmniAccess [Via Satellite 11-30-2015] OmniAccess CEO Bertrand Hartman sees the need for satellite technology to increase in capability in order to keep pace with the runaway demand for connectivity on the seas. The company, which provides satellite connectivity primarily for the yachting sector, is interested in seeing developments across the industry…

Lebanese Red Cross Emergency Medical Services (EMS). Photo: Lebanese Red Cross [Via Satellite 11-30-2015] The Lebanese Red Cross, the sole provider of emergency medical services in Lebanon, is deploying 125 handheld Spot Gen3 safety devices from Globalstar subsidiary Globalstar Europe Satellite Services to enhance the safety of its workers. The humanitarian organization will be using…

[Via Satellite 11-30-2015] SkyVision Global Networks, in partnership with ABS, is launching two new video platforms on the ABS 3A satellite to enable Direct-to-Home (DTH) services across Sub-Saharan Africa, including French speaking Africa and South Africa. Using the ABS 3A satellite at 3 degrees west, SkyVision will supply Digital Video Broadcast-Satellite (DVB-S) and Second Generation…

Photo: Ooredoo [Via Satellite 11-30-2015] Qatari telecommunications company Ooredoo has launched a new broadband service called “VSAT Internet” for nations located in the Middle East. The company is using capacity from Eutelsat’s KA SAT to offer download speeds up to 22 Mbps and upload speeds up to 6 Mbps for applications such as point-of-sale transactions,…

SES infographic of how it’s satellites are used in the Burkina Faso 2015 elections. Photo: SES [Via Satellite 11-30-2015] SES and Commission Electorale Nationale Independante (CENI), the official electoral body of Burkina Faso, partnered to enable secure digital transmission of the results of the Nov. 29 Burkinabe Presidential Election from 368 locations across the country.…

The Blue Origin team celebrates with founder Jeff Bezos at the site of the New Shepard rocket booster landing. Photo: Blue Origin [Via Satellite 11-25-2015] Blue Origin has accomplished a significant milestone in the launch industry. Its New Shepard space vehicle successfully flew to space, reaching its planned test altitude of 329,839 feet (100.5 kilometers)…

Lisa Scalpone, vice president of ViaSat’s broadband services group. Photo: ViaSat [Via Satellite 11-25-2015] ViaSat has taken its next evolutionary step in the residential broadband market in North America by upgrading its residential broadband service, Exede. The service now potentially provides download speeds of up to 25 Mbps, but crucially allows many more customers more…

Telesat’s first high throughput satellite, Telstar 12 Vantage, before shipping to the launch site. Photo: Airbus Defence and Space. [Via Satellite 11-25-2015] Just after successfully launching its latest satellite, Telstar 12 Vantage, Telesat has selected Space Systems Loral (SSL) to build its new High Throughput Satellite (HTS), Telstar 19 Vantage. The new satellite will be…

Myanmar. Photo: Jose Javier Martin Espartosa (Flickr) [Via Satellite 11-25-2015] KBZ Gateway, a subsidiary of Myanmar’s KBZ Group of Companies, has selected Hughes Network Systems’ Jupiter system as the platform for a new high-availability satellite broadband network in Myanmar. Currently under construction, the Jupiter ground control gateways and remote terminals will operate over both Ku-…

[Via Satellite 11-25-2015] Synertone, a Hong Kong satellite solutions provider, has selected Gilat Satellite Networks’ baseband equipment to enable fixed and mobility applications on its High Throughput Satellite (HTS), Ipstar-based network, offering coverage throughout China. Synertone placed orders totaling approximately $12 million for Gilat’s solutions. Powering Synertone’s network will be Gilat’s SkyEdge II-c platform with…