SES ASTRA Boosts Household Reach in the Ukraine

Satellite operator reaches 7.6 million households; Satellite TV is booming; Additional potential with the move of ASTRA 2C

BETZDORF, Luxembourg & KIEV, Ukraine — NAB2009 — SES ASTRA, an SES company (Paris:SESG) (LuxX:SESG), announced today that it has significantly increased its reach in the Ukraine and is now broadcasting to more than 7.6 million households across the country. The strong increase was driven by the boost of digital satellite reach where SES ASTRA gained 1.8 million households in 2008, reaching almost all (2.2 million) of the 2.3 million digital satellite homes in Ukraine. The total number of TV households in the Ukraine was at 17.8 million in 2008.

These new market data were obtained from the latest SES ASTRA Satellite Monitor, conducted annually by a dedicated market research team. The Satellite Monitor continuously measures the development of the reception market for broadcast and broadband services in 35 countries. At year end 2008, SES ASTRA conducted more than 65,000 interviews across all countries. In the Ukraine, the market research institute GfK conducted 2,000 face-to-face interviews in private homes. The methodology and the results are controlled by independent institutes and accepted by regulatory bodies in various markets as objective market measurements.

SES ASTRA is operating in the Ukraine through its affiliate SES SIRIUS, broadcasting from the 5 degrees East orbital position with the SIRIUS 4 spacecraft. SES ASTRA will further strengthen its offer in the region with the move of its ASTRA 2C satellite to the new orbital position 31.5 degrees East which also covers the Ukraine. The move of the satellite is planned for next month.

“The boom of satellite TV in Ukraine has pushed us into a strong position in one of the fastest growing TV markets,” said Alexander Oudendijk, Chief Commercial Officer of SES ASTRA. “Through SES SIRIUS, we are now the largest provider of satellite signals in the Ukraine. The fact that – according to our research – nearly two million Ukrainians intend to purchase a satellite dish in the near future shows that the viewers in this country value the wide scope and the excellent offer of satellite TV and of our satellites. The move of ASTRA 2C will allow us to further support the rapid growth, provide additional high-power capacity to Ukrainian broadcasters and cable operators and offer high-end services to the Ukrainian TV audiences.”

Satellite Monitor figures for year-end 2008 in Ukraine at a glance:

• Number of TV households: 17.8 million
• Number of satellite households: 2.4 million (plus 222 per cent )
• Number of cable households: 5.4 million (plus 6 per cent)
• Number of terrestrial households: 10 million (minus 18 per cent)
• Number of digital households: 3.1 million
• Number of digital satellite households: 2.3 million
• Number of SES ASTRA/ SIRIUS households (incl. cable feed): 7.6 million
• Number of SES ASTRA/ SIRIUS digital satellite households: 2.2 million