Yahlive, the Abu Dhabi-based satellite joint venture between the world leading satellite operator SES and UAE satellite company Yahsat, announced on 16 August 2016 that it has signed a contract renewal with the BBC World Service. As part of the ongoing agreement, the BBC will continue the broadcast of its …
Read More »Gilat’s X-Architecture selected by Avanti for its EE Limited LTE network in UK
Gilat Satellite Networks Ltd., the Israeli provider of satellite networking technology, solutions and services, announced on 8 August 2016 that Avanti Communications Group plc has selected Gilat’s one-platform multiple-application X-Architecture and its mobile-edge computing (MEC) enabled Capricorn very small aperture terminal (VSAT). The announcement relates to Avanti’s contract to supply …
Read More »Yahsat and Panasonic Avionics make connectivity services agreement for Middle East mobility market
Panasonic Avionics and Yahsat announced on 10 August 2016 the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to explore new ways to offer a broadband connectivity solution serving several mobility markets in the Middle East within the next three to five years. In addition, while final terms are still …
Read More »Thuraya to launch mobile satellite services in Vietnam
Leading mobile satellite services (MSS) operator Thuraya Telecommunications has signed an agreement with VNPT VinaPhone making its land and maritime handsets available to the Vietnam Posts and Telecommunications Group (VNPT). Thuraya’s first service agreement in Vietnam is helping VNPT VinaPhone establish satellite services, which was marked by a ceremony attended …
Read More »Satellite spectrum issues for the Middle East: an interview with Hans-Juergen Tscheulin
Space and satellites are often treated as an intrinsically exciting and glamorous field of activity. Yet the issue of spectrum requirements, regulatory filings, and spectrum management are all too often considered to be unglamorous, and as a result are unfairly and dangerously ignored. The reality is that without a competent …
Read More »Egypt on the road to establishing national space agency amidst controversy
The Egyptian government, under the leadership of President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, has agreed upon draft legislation that will eventually create a national space agency for the belaboured country. The announcement was made on 3 August 2016, and aims to harness space technologies for the purposes of economic development and for …
Read More »Iran, Azerbaijan cement space cooperation agreement
Iranian and Azerbaijani officials signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) for space cooperation between the two countries, days before Iranian President Hassan Rouhani visits the Azerbaijani capital, Baku, on 8 August 2016. Iranian Minister for Communication and Information Technology Mahmoud Vaezi and Azerbaijani Minister Communications and High Technologies Ramin Namigoglu …
Read More »Iran and Russia to jointly build a remote sensing satellite for Tehran
Iranian press reports claim that Iranian industry and as yet unnamed Russian satellite manufacturers are to jointly build a National Remote Sensing Satellite for Iran. Mahmoud Vaezi, Iran’s Minister of Communication and Information Technology, recently completed an official visit to Moscow where he met with several Russian government officials and …
Read More »Intelsat-33E readied for late August launch and Middle East coverage
Intelsat S.A., operator of the world’s first Globalized Network, powered by its leading satellite backbone, announced today that Intelsat 33e, the second of the Intelsat EpicNG series of high throughput satellites (HTS), arrived at the Guiana Space Center in Kourou, French Guiana, where it will undergo final preparations before its …
Read More »Kuwait mulling development of a national satellite capability
The Kuwaiti cabinet, the Council of Ministers, is considering the acquisition and launch of a satellite, according to local reports in Kuwait City. Draft legislation has been submitted to the cabinet from the Communications and Information Technology Commission. The reports say that the cabinet has formed a committee to examine …
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