Multichoice
Africa
Cements
Longstanding
Relationship
With
Eutelsat
Through
A 20
Transponder
Lease
On
The
W7
Satellite
22
January
2010
Eutelsat
Communications
announced
the
signature
of
an
historic
contract
with
MultiChoice
Africa,
the
pioneer
in
multi-channel
pay-TV
across
sub-Saharan
Africa.
MultiChoice
has
signed
for
a
total
20
Ku-band
transponders
for
15
years
on
Eutelsat's
new
W7
satellite
that
is
now
fully
operating
at
the
36
degrees
East
position.
Ranking
as
one
of
the
largest
contracts
concluded
by
Eutelsat,
this
new
agreement
extends
to
2025
a
relationship
between
the
two
companies
that
began
in
2000
with
the
positioning
of
Eutelsat's
W4
satellite
at
36
degrees
East
to
support
MultiChoice's
DStv
platform
which
now
reaches
into
more
than
800,000
homes
in
sub-Saharan
Africa,
excluding
Southern
African
subscribers.
Since
the
beginning
of
January,
MultiChoice
has
been
carrying
out
the
transfer
of
television
channels
onto
the
new
satellite
from
the
14
transponders
used
until
now
on
W4
and
SESAT
1 at
36
degrees
East.
This
majority
of
transponders
were
successfully
migrated
by
18
January,
with
the
last
transponder
scheduled
to
move
to
W7
on 1
February
2010.
The
additional
six
transponders
leased
on
W7
will
be
progressively
activated
by
MultiChoice
Africa
to
support
new
services,
including
High
Definition
channels.
With
the
move
to
W7,
MultiChoice
Africa
has
consolidated
all
of
its
Ku-band
pay-TV
activity
outside
Southern
Africa
onto
one
Eutelsat
satellite.
In
addition
to
benefiting
from
better
signal
levels
and
improved
coverage
for
all
the
regions
already
served
from
Eutelsat's
36
degrees
East
neighbourhood,
MultiChoice
Africa
has
extended
its
Ku-band
service
to
additional
countries,
notably
Ethiopia,
which
has
been
receiving
DStv
in
C-band,
requiring
large
domestic
antennas.
In a
further
step
to
consolidate
the
relationship,
Eutelsat
will
actively
support
the
MultiChoice
Resource
Centre
(MRC)
programme
which
uses
the
digital
satellite
platform
to
enhance
the
learning
and
teaching
experience
in
over
710
schools
across
Africa.
Eutelsat
will
further
support
MultiChoice's
objectives
and
will
deliver
additional
educational
content
focused
on
building
knowledge
and
understanding
of
satellite
applications
and
engineering.
Collins
Khumalo,
President
of
MultiChoice
Africa
said:
"The
launch
of
the
W7
satellite
will
enable
us
to
significantly
improve
our
DStv
services
on
the
continent
while
remaining
at
the
cutting
edge
of
African
pay
television
entertainment.
This
new
satellite
will
deliver
a
better
DStv
signal,
a
greater
selection
of
channels
and
allow
us
to
introduce
exciting
new
High
Definition
services."
Michel
de
Rosen,
Eutelsat's
Chief
Executive
Officer,
responded:
"After
ten
years
of
strong
collaboration
at
our
36
degrees
East
neighbourhood,
the
Eutelsat
/
MultiChoice
Africa
partnership
can
now
move
into
a
higher
gear
with
W7.
In
terms
of
capacity,
coverage
and
power,
the
long-term
requirements
of
this
leading
player
in
Africa's
buoyant
pay-TV
market
were
one
of
Eutelsat's
core
priorities
when
we
initiated
this
new
satellite
programme.
We
are
delighted
to
welcome
MultiChoice
Africa
on
board
W7
and
that
this
is
their
satellite
of
choice
to
deliver
a
compelling
range
of
digital
services
to
African
homes
in
38
countries."
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