Video: HD, 3D, mobile-broadcasting continue to enrich the viewing experience

Over 70%of Eutelsat’s activities derive fromconsumer
broadcasting and professional video services that
leverage the exceptional ability of satellites to cover
large territories, and their economic efficiency for
simultaneous content delivery to the audience targeted.
OVER FIVE YEARS, THE NUMBER OF
CHANNELS BROADCAST BY EUTELSAT’S
SATELLITES HAS DOUBLED FROM 1 800
TO MORE THAN 3 700
This sustained growth is driven by the success of
pay-TV platforms, which represent 63% of channels
broadcast by Eutelsat satellites, and by the
diversity of free-to-air channels. With over 1,100
channels, Eutelsat’s premium HOT BIRD™ neighbourhood
is a worldwide leading position for the number of channels
broadcast to consumer homes.
FEEDING AND COMPLEMENTING NEW
BROADCASTING NETWORKS
In parallel to the ongoing take-up of Direct-to-Home (DTH)
satellite reception, which progressed worldwide by 16% between
2008 and 2010, the emergence of new-generation TV platforms
is a significant engine for growth for Eutelsat. In addition to the
longstanding activity of broadcasting channels to cable headends,
Eutelsat is facilitating Digital Terrestrial Television (DTT)
roll-out by delivering multiplexes to national transmitter networks
and directly serving homes beyond range of terrestrial reception.
In the IPTV market, through direct reception, Eutelsat enables
telecom operators and ISPs to extend triple play services to
subscribers located too far from terrestrial headends to receive
a quality video signal.
HDTV IS ALREADY A SUCCESS STORY, AS CONSUMER
APPETITE DEVELOPS FOR 3D
Driven by consumer demand for an ever improved viewing experience,
HDTV is already a success story in all the markets served
by Eutelsat’s satellites. The number of HD channels broadcast by
Eutelsat increased from 100 to almost 200 in 2010. The bandwidth
demands of HDTV, which are 2.5 times those of Standard Digital,
place satellites in a unique position for broadcasting the very best of
HD quality to an unlimited number of homes, both nationally and
internationally. In a study published in September 2010, Euroconsult
estimates that 20% of the world’s TV channels will be broadcast in
HD by the end of the decade in comparison to 5% today.
The same quest to leverage technological progress to enhance
viewer satisfaction is driving the new market for 3D, shown by the
success in 2010 of 3D coverage of World Cup Football transmitted
by Eutelsat’s ATLANTIC BIRD™ 3 and W7 satellites, The first
generation of consumer 3D Ready displays are now commercialised,
while programmers including Orange, Al Jazeera Sport and NTV-Plus
have begun production of the first pre-commercial 3D channels.
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World Cup Football was also the opportunity for
Eutelsat to extend the network of cinemas equipped
for 3D reception of special events. Over 450 cinemas
across Europe can now offer consumers a date with
spectacular 3D content delivered live by satellite and
shown on giant screens for a full immersion experience