Mediascape Launches New Philippines DTH Platform on NSS-11

SES NEW SKIES satellite at 108.2° East welcomes fourth DTH platform

THE HAGUE, Netherlands — SES NEW SKIES, an SES company (Paris:SESG)(LuxX:SESG) announces that it has been contracted by Mediascape, Inc. to provide transponder capacity on the NSS-11 satellite for their new direct-to-home (DTH) satellite television service targeting the Philippines. Terms of the multiple-year, multiple-transponder contract remain confidential.

Mediascape’s DTH service is expected to launch 24 channels in its basic tier package which includes highly desirable Filipino and English channels at affordable pricing levels. The service will be available in both postpaid and prepaid plans in collaboration with Smart Communications, Inc., the country’s leading wireless company.

States Mr. Orlando B. Vea, President and CEO of Mediascape: “SES NEW SKIES’ high power NSS-11 satellite provides optimal DTH coverage of our target markets, allowing for reception of our bouquet of channels on small, easy to install dishes. Direct-to-home satellite television is hugely successful in other markets in Asia, but has lagged behind in the Philippines. We are convinced that our offer on NSS-11 will meet consumer demand in the Philippines; and with our strong marketing and distribution network, we will help propel the pay-TV market here to new levels.”

Elias Zaccack, Vice President, Sales, Asia-Pacific at SES NEW SKIES, concurs: “The Philippines’ pay TV market is still at a nascent stage, compared with other regional pay-TV markets. At roughly 18% market penetration, pay-TV has a long way to go in the Philippines. NSS-11 offers an excellent platform to drive this growth: High look angles, excellent power levels, and capacity to grow. We look forward to working with Mediascape to successfully develop satellite DTH in the Philippines and beyond.”

“108.2° East is quickly becoming a hot orbital position for video in East Asia,” adds Zaccack. “With more than 120 channels in Chinese, Korean, Filipino, and English, and over a million homes connected thus far, NSS-11 has become a neighbourhood of choice for programmers wishing to penetrate markets in Korea, Taiwan, HK, China, and the Philippines.”

About NSS-11

From the orbital position of 108.2° East, NSS-11 provides high-powered Ku-band coverage of China, Korea, Japan, the Philippines, South Asia, and parts of the Middle East. The spacecraft enables a full range of media and data applications, from direct -to-home television broadcasting to government communications and VSAT networks. NSS-11 is currently home to a number of Chinese-, Indian- and Korean-language television channels and pay-TV platforms, and supports an estimated 40,000 VSAT terminals in India.