Nagravision to secure SkyLife HD DTH service in Korea

CHESEAUX, Switzerland — Nagravision, a Kudelski Group (SIX:KUD.VX) company and the world’s leading independent provider of content protection solutions, announces today that its NAGRA Media ACCESS conditional access system (CAS) was selected by SkyLife, the sole DTH pay TV service provider in Korea with 2.4 million subscribers to secure their new HD platform.

SkyLife, one of the largest and most advanced DTH operators in Asia, is aggressively migrating from standard definition to high definition by implementing the state-of-the-art, feature-rich NAGRA Media ACCESS solution. Alongside the introduction of HD, the cooperation with Nagravision will also cover innovative services including a hybrid satellite/IPTV offer and 3D.

“We have been convinced by Nagravision’s strong commitment to Asia and to Korea in particular, their superior security technology and track record, and their strong willingness to understand and meet our requirements”, said Mong-Ryong Lee, CEO of SkyLife. “The openness of Nagravision to work with local partners was another important decision factor.”

“We are excited to work with SkyLife, one of the most innovative pay TV operators in Asia. This new partnership proves our strong commitment to the Korean market, which is also demonstrated by our cooperation with Korean companies to jointly develop local solutions for SkyLife. We are also very proud to help SkyLife with our advanced technology to become one of the world leaders in the areas of hybrid solutions and 3DTV, which are both at the heart of our innovation”, said André Kudelski, Chairman and CEO of the Kudelski Group.

Nagravision’s expanding footprint in Asia confirms the Kudelski Group’s support of the strong development of the DTV sector in this region.

About SkyLife

Korea Digital Satellite Broadcasting Co. Ltd., more universally recognized under its ‘SkyLife’ brand name, is the only satellite broadcasting operator (DTH platform) in Korea providing more than 190 channels, 53 channels of which are HD channels, the most in Korea. The number of HD channels is supposed to be over 70 by the end of 2010. The expanded HD offering will rely on the launch of a new satellite (Mugungwha-6 launched by KT), set for the second quarter of 2010.

SkyLife commenced its commercial service in March 2002 and reached 2,460,000 subscribers as of the end of 2009, which accounts for around 13% of all households in Korea. As of now around 20% of the SkyLife customers subscribe to HD packages. On 1st January, 2010, SkyLife launched a 24 hour 3D dedicated channel (“Sky3D”, channel number 1), the first satellite channel of its kind in the world. It delivers sports, events, animations and other entertainment content from some of the world’s most renowned 3D producers as well as the content produced by SkyHD, a subsidiary company of SkyLife.