Solaris Mobile establishes European HQ in Dublin

Solaris Mobile, which will provide TV, video and radio plus two-way communication to a variety of handheld mobile devices – such as phones, laptops and portable media players – is establishing its corporate headquarters in Dublin. A projected 50 high-skilled jobs will be created by the new company over the next three years.

Solaris Mobile is a joint-venture satellite based service company formed by SES ASTRA and Eutelsat and the services are scheduled for launch in early 2009. The company will operate in a 2.00 GHz frequency band, the S-band, reserved for the exclusive use of satellite and terrestrial mobile services. The S-band sits alongside UMTS frequencies that are already used across Europe for 3G terrestrial services. At an event in Dublin arranged to mark the establishment of the company in the city, a demonstration of mobile TV service was provided by Alcatel-Lucent, one of the world leading companies developing the enabling technology.

The infrastructure will be able to deliver a wide range of broadcast and multimedia services on an anytime-and-anywhere basis. Satellite networks will now be able to compete with, and complement, terrestrial networks in the provision of broadcasting services to the mobile sector. The Dublin headquarters will handle all corporate responsibilities for Europe including regulatory support, sales and marketing, brand awareness, finance, and compliance and legal issues. It will identify new business opportunities, and negotiate and manage partnerships with broadcasters, content developers, network operators and handset manufacturers.

Steve Maine, Solaris Mobile CEO, said: “This venture is of major strategic importance to our parent companies as it ensures a first mover advantage in Europe for satellite broadcast services to the mobile industry. As this is the first joint venture between SES ASTRA and Eutelsat, it was vital to find the right location for the company HQ.

“We assessed several possibilities but decided that Dublin would deliver this project to our tight deadlines and with access to the right resources and communication lines”

Mary Coughlan TD, Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, in welcoming the investment, said, “This project is the first investment in Ireland by international satellite operators and as such is a unique investment for the country, particularly as it is being made by two of the highest profile brand-name companies in the global satellite communications industry. The sophisticated technical qualifications, knowledge and experience requirements of the new positions is once again a significant endorsement of Ireland’s wealth of talent and expertise. It is also a measure of the confidence which leading global companies have in the ability of this country to deliver on projects at the forefront of their industry. This project will provide an important marketing reference for IDA’s continuing work to attract new business within the mobile, media and telecommunications sectors.”