May 24, 2012
Eutelsat Communications announced that its HOT BIRD satellite TV neighbourhood at 13° East and the EUTELSAT 5 West A satellite at 5° West have been selected by beIN SPORT to broadcast its two new channels for the French market, beIN SPORT 1 et beIN SPORT 2.
beIN Sport 1 is on track for launch on June 1 and will show premium coverage of the UEFA Euro 2012 championship from June 8. Its sister channel, beIN Sport 2, will follow this summer.
The contract with Eutelsat follows beIN Sport's acquisition of LFP Ligue (France's Professional Football League) and UEFA Champions League rights and many other premium sports for the French market. Favouring two satellite TV positions already well-anchored in French TV homes will enable beIN Sport 1 and 2 to optimise their reach from day one and ensure the highest broadcast quality for live and exclusive viewing of premium sports.
For Michel de Rosen, CEO of Eutelsat: "The longstanding presence of two of our leading satellite TV neighbourhoods in France's media landscape will be further consolidated by the arrival of beIN SPORT's first television channels for viewers in France. The launch of thesenew TV ventures also testifies to the dynamic of the satellite broadcasting market that continues to welcome new players and programming concepts in order to deliver viewers premium content andthe finest image quality. Eutelsat is delighted with this agreement to pursue our relationship with Al Jazeera, a vibrant and go-ahead international broadcasting group."
Source: PR Newswire (http://s.tt/1cGon)
