Satellite Television (DBS, DTH, DSat, DVB-S, DVB-S2) News

Global pay TV market to generate $269 billion in 2014
Oct 23, 2014 – ​The worldwide Pay TV market is expected to surpass 920 million subscribers by the end of 2014. Overall, Pay TV average revenue per user (ARPU) is expected to drop slightly due to increasing price competition, according to ABI Research.
News categories: ABI Research, Jake Saunders, Khin Sandi Lynn, Cable TV, Digital TV, IPTV, Market Research, Satellite, Subscribers, Worldwide

HD and VOD feed Latin America's pay TV growth
Oct 22, 2014 – According to Frost & Sullivan, Latin American's pay TV market is expected to continue its growth trajectory due to a rise in postpaid subscriptions for DTH. Demand for value-added services such as HD and VOD is further spurring market development.
News categories: Frost & Sullivan, Renato Pasquini, Cable TV, Digital TV, IPTV, Latin America, Market Research, MMDS, Satellite

Tricolor TV launches pilot Ultra HD 4K channel
Oct 22, 2014 – Russian satellite television service provider, Tricolor TV, has announced that it has begun broadcasting a pilot channel in Ultra HD - a first for Russia. The channel is broadcast with 4K resolution at 60 fps, using HEVC/H.265 compression.
News categories: Tricolor TV, Digital TV, Russia, Satellite

Express-AM6 DTH satellite put into orbit over Russia
Oct 22, 2014 – Communications and broadcasting satellite Express-AM6 has been launched into orbit. Express-AM6 will be deployed at 53°E, to provide coverage of European Russia, the Urals and Western Siberia as well as the Middle East, Europe and Africa.
News categories: RSCC, Yuri Prokhorov, Content Distribution, Digital TV, Russia, Satellite

Demand for pay TV video encoders on the rise
Oct 21, 2014 – According to Frost & Sullivan, the demand for pay TV video encoders is on the rise, with cable, Internet protocol TV (IPTV) and satellite companies requiring these products to get consumers the shows they want from content producers to their home set-top boxes.
News categories: Frost & Sullivan, Robert Cavin, Cable TV, Content Distribution, Digital TV, IPTV, Market Research, Satellite, Worldwide

Airtel and Samsung launch India's first IDTV
Oct 21, 2014 – Airtel digital TV, the Direct-To-Home (DTH) service from Bharti Airtel, has announced a partnership with Samsung to launch India’s first Integrated Digital TV (iDTV).
News categories: Airtel, Samsung, Shashi Arora, Ranjivjit Singh, CAM, Digital TV, India, Satellite, Smart TV

UK's Freesat adds 8,000 TV homes in 3Q 2014
Oct 20, 2014 – Freesat, the UK satellite TV service, has maintained its 2014 momentum by adding 8,000 new TV homes in the three months to the end of September. In all, Freesat has added 32,000 new households in the first nine months of 2014.
News categories: Freesat, Emma Scott, Apps, Digital TV, Satellite, Set Top Box, Subscribers, UK

DIRECTV subscribers up 36% in Uruguay at end-1H 2014
Oct 17, 2014 – The Uruguayan communications regulator, URSEC, has released a survey of the telecommunications market in Uruguay up to the end of June 2014. The number of Pay TV subscribers at mid-year was 685,591, up from 620,926 at the end of June 2013.
News categories: URSEC, Cable TV, Digital TV, Satellite, Subscribers, Uruguay

DTG Testing Freesat SI/PSI test suite release now available for download
Oct 17, 2014 – DTG Testing has announced an update to its Freesat SI/PSI test suite product, with additional test cases. The new test suite is recommended for all development testing.
News categories: DTG Testing, Digital TV, QoE, Satellite, Set Top Box, UK