Really Rocket Science

Dish Network announced good results today, including a special $2 dividend:

 Dish Network Corp. (DISH) Chief Executive Charles Ergen said Monday that dividends are "always on the table" for the satellite-TV provider.

The comments come on the heels of Dish’s $2-per-share dividend payout, which took Wall Street by surprise because the company tends to avoid returning cash to shareholders.

Dish did attempt to use the cash to make an acquisition or reinvest in the business, but couldn’t find a good use for the funds, Ergen told analysts Monday. He was reluctant to spend on the business with the overhang of TiVo Inc. (TIVO) litigation still lingering.

Although the opinion at Barron’s is to take the money, I think the prospects remain good for satellite TV.

Cheers!

 

GlobeCast will provide its Content Exchange solution to the French multihull yacht Crepes Whaou for the 9th annnual Transat Jacques Vabre transatlantic sailing competition.
[SatNews – 11/06/2009]

Microsoft Corp. selects partners Akamai Technologies and iStreamPlanet work with Microsoft to provide integrated end-to-end solution to deliver live and on-demand video of Vancouver Olympic Winter Games.
[SatNews – 11/06/2009]

Avanti’s HYLAS arrives at ISRO facility in India where it will be integrated into the platform and prepared for launch, on schedule for 2Q launch in 2010.
SatNews – 11/05/2009]

Globalstar opens new gateway expanding coverage into oil rich Nigeria and Western Africa.
[CNNMoney – 11/05/2009]

ViaSat announces new contract awards of $225.7M in second quarter, and discusses plans to utilize compelling capacity on upcoming ViaSat-1 satellite for recently acquired WildBlue’s resources and distribution.
[SatNews – 11/05/2009]

DirecTV’s third-quarter profit up slightly, although customer cancellation rate may signal a coming end to the insulation from the competitive fray DirecTV has enjoyed the past several quarters.
[Wall Street Journal – 11/05/2009]

RapidEye announces frame contract with European Space Agency to provide satellite imagery for monitoring and change detection in areas prone to natural disasters.
[SatNews – 11/05/2009]

Eutelsat reports record revenue growth of 11.6% in first quarter 2009-2010.
[Reuters – 11/05/2009]

Sirius XM announces positive adjusted income for fourth quarter in a row, with increased subscribers and reduced satellite costs.
[Reuters – 11/05/2009]

Harris Corp will build satellite broadband system for U.S. Navy.
[Orlando Business Journal – 11/04/2009]

SES WORLD SKIES announces agreement with Solomon Telekom for satellite capacity on NSS-9 to provide satellite broadband across the Solomon Islands.
[SatNews – 11/04/2009]

Cypress state-of-the-art CMOS image sensors specially designed for high accuracy star tracking used on European Space Agency’s Proba-2 satellite launched on November 2.
[Reuters – 11/04/2009]

Hughes Communications reports record subscriber growth for its satellite broadband business, with broadband services revenue up 16% and total revenue up 12%.
[Reuters – 11/04/2009]

Vizada receives award from Inmarsat for highest revenue growth of all Inmarsat mobile satellite distribution partners, with 9% growth since 2008.
[Reuters – 11/04/2009]

Globecomm Systems revenue for first quarter increases 12.6% based on a 52.0% increase in revenues from services, offsetting decreasing revenues from infrastructure solutions.
[Reuters – 11/04/2009]

Orbital super-sensor launched by U.S. Air Force Weather Agency October 18 can analyze molecules and ions over wide slice of upper atmosphere – up to 700 km deep.
[R&D Magazine – 11/04/2009]

Pentagon reports that the U.S. military is now tracking 800 maneuverable satellites for possible collisions and expects to add 500 non-maneuverable satellites by year’s end.
[Reuters – 11/03/2009]

CapRock Government Solutions signs agreement with UK based Paradigm Secure Communications allowing Caprock to offer X-band capacity and network services to U.S. military and intelligence communities.
[SatNews – 11/03/2009]

Comtech receives $1M order for frequency converters from U.S. military.
[Reuters – 11/03/2009]

Telstar 18 to be used by HBO Asia to deliver HDTV to millions of subscribers in Asia under agreement with Telesat.
[SatNews – 11/03/2009]

L-3 contracts with Lockheed Martin to supply command, control, communications, and monitor system used in factory testing for GPS III satellite manufacturing program.
[Test & Measurement World – 11/03/2009]

Eutelsat W7 satellite in Baikonour and on track for Proton launch on November 23.
[Reuters – 11/03/2009]

SES WORLD SKIES announces multi-year agreement with MediaScape for additional capacity on NSS-11 to deliver HDTV in the Phillipines.
[SatNews – 11/03/2009]

Eutelsat reaches 100 HD channels.
[Satellite Today – 11/03/2009]

Integral Systems opens facility in UK to provide turnkey Earth Station System Integration capability.
[Reuters – 11/03/2009]

European Soil Moisture and Ocean Salinity satellite launched aboard modified Russian ballistic missile.
[Spaceflight Now – 11/02/2009]

WBMSAT PS – Satellite Communications Consulting Services

Ariane 5 prepared for double-duty launch October 29 with installation of second payload NSS-12 satellite for SES WORLD SKIES now complete, following earlier installation of Telenor Satellite Broadcasting’s THOR 6 relay platform.
[SatNews – 10/22/2009]

Rockwell Collins is selected to provide Extended Data Rate International Partners Variant Single Channel Anti-jam Manportable terminals to the Canadian Department of National Defense for use with the U.S. Advanced Extremely High Frequency satellites.
[SatNews – 10/22/2009

Iridium Communications subsidiary Iridium Communicaciones de Mexico SAPI de CV receives all authorizations and licenses to offer services in Mexico.
[Reuters – 10/21/2009]

The Indian Navy will get a dedicated communications satellite next year, built by ISRO,  to boost its network-centric operations and connectivity at sea.
[domain-b – 10/22/2009]

Newtec announces that InSat GmbH will use Newtec’s Elevation modulators and demodulators, using 32 APSK modulation, for IP trunking for a new project in the Middle East and Central Asia.
[PRESSEMITTEILUNGEN – 10/21/2009]

SAT Corporation partners with ViaSat to provide signal monitoring and interference detection; Monics system will support eight gateway earth stations planned throughout Europe for Tooway consumer broadband.
[Reuters – 10/21/2009]

U.S. Army Communications-electronics Research, Development, and Engineering Center at Fort Monmouth will host briefing to industry on innovative military satellite communications technologies on November 17 – 18.
[Military & Aerospace Electronics – 10/21/2009]

Newtec will sign a major Memorandum of Agreement with Arabsat October 25th for jointly developing new markets and satellite technologies throughout the Middle East.
[SatNews – 10/20/2009]

Comtech receives $1.6M of orders for high power amplifiers from a leading provider of aviation electronics and communications systems to be used in airborne-to-satellite-to-ground communications systems.
[Reuters – 10/20/2009]

Viasat and Innotech Aviation successfully completed the first installation of ViaSat’s high-speed broadband terminal on a Bombardier Global Express XRS aircraft; Satcom Direct then commissioned the terminal into the Viasat Yonder satellite airborne broadband network.
[SatNews – 10/20/2009]

Harris Corporation researchers will present eight technical papers discussing methods to improve communications networking and security including improving utilization of satellite resources at MILCOM 2009.
[Reuters – 10/19/2009]

Lockheed Martin team demonstrates interface compatibility of firs Mobile User Objective System satellite’s dual legacy and UHF communications payloads with ground terminals; design to provide improved and assured communications,  delivering simultaneous voice, data and video services for U.S. mobile warfighters.
[Reuters – 10/19/2009]

The Indian Space Research Organisation plans to launch two dedicated satellites to study climate change in 2021 and 2011.
[SatNews – 10/19/2009]

AeroMechanical Services announces completion of flight testing of technology to stream data from aircraft to ground anywhere, anytime, using Iridium satellite network and ground-based server; streaming can be triggered by flight crew or ground staff; voice communications also supported.
[Reuters – 10/19/2009]

YahClick online services based on Microsoft Live may be offered in Middle East, Africa, and South-West Asia by Yahsat following signing of Memorandum of Understanding.
[SatNews – 10/19/2009]

U.S. Coast Guard approves Collecte Localisation Satellites Thorium terminal for Long-Range Identification and Tracking using Iridium satellite network.
[SatNews – 10/19/2009]

GeoEye contracts with Gibraltar Associates to serve as its public relations agency of record.
[SatNews – 10/19/2009]

The U.S.A.F.’s Defense Meteorological Satellite Program F-18 Block 5D-3 satellite built by Lockheed Martin is launched from Vandenberg AFB.
[Reuters – 10/18/2009]

Mars missions boosted by communication breakthrough – engineers find way to communicate continuously with Mars taking advantage of Lagrange points, five points in space where satellite can stay fixed in same location relative to Earth and Sun, and a spacecraft with a continuous thrusting propulsion system.
[Telegraph – 10/17/209]

NSR free webinar to discuss absence of effect on commercial satellite supply and demand by the current recession and High Throughput Satellite technology and applications.
[NSR webinar scheduled November 10 2009]

WBMSAT PS – Satellite Communications Consulting Services

Forget the news out of Washington on distant locals. The real news is using satellite for rural broadband.

Charlie wants some satcom stimulus. Via Aviation Week:

Last month, EchoStar submitted a bid for U.S. rural broadband stimulus funding in partnership with WildBlue, with which it already has a distribution agreement (AW&ST Sept. 14, p. 33). The teaming arrangement, dubbed EchoBlue Rural Broadband, is seeking $130 million in grants from the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) and $400 million in loans from the Agriculture Dept.’s Rural Utility Service to help cover the estimated $500 million needed to build and launch a high-data-rate Ka-band satellite.

In addition, EchoStar requested $100 million in stimulus funding to launch broadband service with its existing satellites and another $30 million or so to fund customer hardware.

The company is also rolling out an IPTV service, known as VIP-TV, at its 85 deg. W. Long. orbital location that it sees as a possible new “killer application” for the telecom satellite sector. The service offers an MPEG-4 encoded IP stream of about 275 standard and high-definition TV channels, and is aimed at second- and third-tier U.S. cable and telecom operators.

EchoStar CEO Dean Olmstead admits it will be a challenge to make the VIP-TV business case work. SES Americom (now part of SES World Skies) abandoned a similar offering, IP-Prime, citing high costs and insufficient revenues. However, Olmstead, a former Americom chief executive, thinks EchoStar can avoid the pitfalls of the SES service, which was burdened by heavy technical support for the many small users that dominated its customer base. VIP-TV, he says, will be able to take advantage of EchoStar’s experience with set-top boxes to minimize risk. In March, EchoStar began offering a conversion service to lure IP-Prime customers.

 Go Dean O! Remember Americom2Home? That idea was proposed on his watch in 2002. Since EchoStar’s Ka-band payload was launched, it wasn’t actually used for broadband connectivity — at least not on the same scale. Federal agencies (read: DoD) were consistently asking for capacity, and WildBlue turned to EchoStar to augment their inventory (some spot beams were sold-out quickly).

If satellite is "quick to deploy" for Internet service, why have we waited years for satellite broadband to come around? Answer: profits. 80% EBITDA margins.

Lufthansa to offer passengers satellite connection to wireless broadband internet in 2010, in partnership with Panasonic Avionics, using antenna systems built by Israeli company Starling Advanced Communications.
[Haaretz – 10/16/2009]

House committee approves satellite reauthorization bill, granting satellite operators a compulsory license to carry distant TV network station signals – Dish network is allowed back into the distant network signal business in exchange for reaching all 210 markets.
[Broadcasting & Cable – 10/15/2009]

Eutelsat announces extencion of multi-year agreement with Poland’s Cyfrowy Polsat, with the pay-TV operator taking three transponders on HOT BIRD.
[SatNews – 10/15/2009]

BAE Systems equipment governs command and control functions and provides electric power aboard DigitalGlobe’s WorldView-2 satellite.
[SatNews – 10/15/2009]

Numerex Corp joins QinetiQ North America team that has been awarded multi-year contract from the Federal Emergency Management Agency for full program management of FEMA’s Total Asset Visibility assed tracking program.
[SatNews – 10/15/2009]

Globe Wireless signs distribution agreement to sell Addvalue FleetBroadband equipment to its maritime customers, offering turnkey solution with installation, service, and repair in addition to airtime and applications.
[SatNews – 10/15/2009]

Harris showcases latest digital technology solutions at HD World 2009 including upgraded Harris NewsForce HD/SD production platform featuring proxy file support and integration.
[SatNews – 10/15/2009]

Globecomm Systems announces U.S. Army has exercised $2.3m contract option for continued production of the Joint IP Modem.
[SatNews – 10/15/2009]

Canada’s Olympic Broadcast Media Consortium selects Harris Corporation to deliver end-to-end HD broadcast solution during coverage of 2010 Olympic Winter Games in Vancouver.
[SatNews – 10/15/2009]

Telesat’s Nimiq 5 satellite is placed into commercial service on October 10, fully leased to EchoStar for the life of the satellite.
[SatNews – 10/14/2009]

World’s fastest satellite internet connection, up to 155 Mbps with 1.2m antenna, is studied by Nanyan Technological University team working with Japan Aerospace eXploration Agency and National Institute of Information and Communications Technology, looking for solutions to improve satellite links during heavy rainfall.
[Science Daily – 10/14/2009]

Atlas V is scheduled to launch the Air Force’s Defense Meteorological Satellite Program F18 satellite from Vandenberg on October 18 – the 600th launch of an Atlas vehicle.
[SatNews – 10/14/2009]

Globecomm Systems will introduce a new portable TomCatTM X-band satellite terminal at SATCON.
[Reuters – 10/14/2009]

Boeing ships third Wideband Global SATCOM satellite to Cape Canaveral for November launch for the Air Force.
[SatNews – 10/14/2009]

Intelsat signs multi-year contract with Altitude Sports & Entertainment to distribute its regional sports programming across the U.S. in HD and SD on Galaxy 17.
[SatNews – 10/14/2009]

TeleCuba will build a U.S.-Cuba cable after U.S. government announced in April that it would allow service providers to build out optical cable and satellite facilities linking the U.S. and Cuba.
[Fierce Telecom – 10/14/2009]

Orbit Technologies announces record orders for its satellite communications products – in excess of $5m for its marine VSAT systems in the second quarter.
[SatNews – 10/14/2009]

NASA to retire TDRS-1 tracking and data relay satellite on October 28 after 26-year stellar performance following a rocky start.
[Reuters – 10/14/2009]

ATCi low cost GSM satellite backhaul services offered throughout Asia.
[Reuters – 10/14/2009]

Iridium and H2OSatellite provide critical satellite communications for Beluga Shipping’s successful pioneering transit of the Northeast Passage.
[Reuters – 10/14/2009]

Expand Networks demonstrates advancements in satellite link optimization for WANs at SatCon 2009.
[Reuters – 10/14/2009]

Comtech wins $1.8M high-power amplifier orders for satellite terminals to provide satellite connectivity for soldiers.
[Reuters – 10/14/2009]

50,000 GlobalWave customers are successfully migrated to Inmarsat’s latest satellites by SkyWave.
[PRLog – 10/14/2009]

RapidEye delivers 2009 Canadian growing season images of agricultural areas to GeoFarm Solutions, in conjunction with the Agri-Trend Network.
[SatNews – 10/13/2009]

Enterprise Satellite Solutions of California enters distribution agreement with U.K.-base Applied Satellite Technology, allowing Enterprise to expand its sales and distribution with providers such as Inmarsat, Thuraya, and Iridium.
[Satellite Today – 10/13/2009]

Saudi Arabian Airlines will install full SwiftBroadband Mobile OnAir and WiFi Internet OnAir inflight passenger communications services on their fleet of Airbus A330 planes flying international routes.
[SatNews – 10/13/2009]

Comtech subsidiary Comtech AeroAstro is awarded Air Force Research Laboratory contract for development of Advanced Plug and Play Technologies for space missions.
[SatNews – 10/13/2009]

Viasat signs IPTV distribution deal with the largest IPTV service provider in Estonia, Elion.
[Satellite Today – 10/12/2009]

Hungary’s public broadcaster Magyar Televizio selects Eutelsat’s EUROBIRD 9A satellite for broadcasting across Europe.
[Reuters – 10/12/2009]

As European video market becomes more complex, new opportunities emerge for satellite operators to sell Ku-band capacity.
[NSR Report – Global Assessment of Satellite Supply & Demand – October 2009]

WBMSAT PS – Satellite Communications Consulting Services

Want to find out a particular satellite’s C-band coverage? There’s an app for that.

Commercial satellite operator SES World Skies published an iPhone app last month. Who knew? No "press release" or splashy introduction on their Web site. So while I was at the SATCON Expo show in New York yesterday, and bada-bing: SES is showing an app in their booth.

OK, let me check it out…

The app is called "SES World Skies" and apparently is the first of its kind.  No other "satellite coverage" app exists, so they got that going for them.

First of all, it uses 30 MB and only works in the horizontal position. Google Earth is 8.9 MB. Well, that’s not good. The description is the company’s standard boilerplate:

SES WORLD SKIES is the new global division of SES, created through the combination of the former SES NEW SKIES and SES AMERICOM. The company operates a fleet of 25 satellites – part of the 40 spacecraft of the SES group – delivering services as diverse as television distribution and broadcast, internet access, data transmission and business and government communications to customers worldwide. SES WORLD SKIES currently has six additional satellites under construction. The company’s unique customer-focused approach allows it to offer the best satellite solution for a host of business and government requirements, with a view toward helping customers meet their short-term challenges and realize their longer-term goals. SES WORLD SKIES comprises a world-class team of customer care and technical professionals located in Princeton (NJ), The Hague, Washington D.C., Singapore, Beijing, London, Sao Paulo, Mexico City, Sydney, Accra and Johannesburg. Visit www.ses.com for more information.

WTF? This is enough to get me to download? OK, so it’s free.  How do I use it? Nevermind, just start tapping. I did eventually find the instructions page (misspelled, too).

It shows basic, general coverage of each satellite, and lists the general specifications. Does it take advantage of the iPhone’s GPS? No. Can you type in your location and see what satellites are available? No. Can you contact a local sales office for a particular satellite? No. Can you check whether inventory is available for a 4-hour sporting event? No.

SES would have been better off collaborating with DishPointer and building a really good app that promotes their business in general and adds value to the customer experience in particular. In fact, you should check out DishPointer’s app. It rocks. Check out the Augmented Reality Pro version — a steal at $20. Here’s a demo video…

The SES app, unfortunately, won’t be found on many "best iPhone apps" lists any time soon.

Satellite Holdings changes name of Raven Group to Skyware Global.
[SatNews – 10/09/2009]

DigitalGlobe WorldView-2 satellite successfully launched from Vandenberg AFB, California.
[SatNews – 10/08/2009}

Viasat receives $46M contract from Star Satellite Communications Company, a subsidiary of Yahsat, for network infrastructure and customer premise terminals for new high-speed internet service in Middle East, Africa, and Southwest Asia.
[socalTECH – 10/08/2009]

Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite to image impact of its empty upper stage before the satellite also crashes into the moon; studies of plume of gas and dust may confirm presence of ice.
[SatNews – 10/08/2009]

SpeedCast and Eutelsat expand coverage of their maritime solution across the Atlantic Ocean and the Americas.
[Satellite Today – 10/08/2009]

Omnicity Corp signs agreement with StarBand Communications to offer StarBand satellite high speed internet service in Omnicity markets throughout the U.S.
[SatNews – 10/08/2009]

KT Corporation signs multi-year pre-launch contract for capacity on Intelsat 17 satellite to be launched in 2011, to deliver enhanced broadband VSAT services in Asia, Africa, and Middle East.
[SatNews – 10/08/2009]

TDM Satellite Channel, Macau, begins free to air broadcasting on newly launched AsiaSat 5 satellite serving more than 50 countries in Asia Pacific.
[SatNews – 10/08/2009]

Inmarsat and Vizada donate 70 BGAN terminals to ITU in agreement to improve emergency communications for disaster preparedness and coordinate relief activities.
[SatNews – 10/08/2009]

RapidEye supplies German company EOMAP with satellite imagery to support mapping services for oil spill monitoring in Australia.
[SatNews – 10/08/2009]

UTV signs contract for capacity on MEASAT-3a for carriage of UTV Movies.
[SatNews – 10/08/2009]

Cable & Wireless Panama chooses Gilat to provide SkyEdge II high-performance network to deliver broadband internet to hundreds of schools in remote areas nationwide.
[SatNews – 10/08/2009]

Eutelsat adds 100th HD channel with Sky Sport 1HD.
[hd-report – 10/07/2009]

Satellite and Telco TV services beat Cable on J.D. Power customer satisfaction survey.
[Multichannel News – 10/07/2009]

ExactEarth, subsidiary of COM DEV International, successfully uses NanoSat Automatic Identification System technology to help Canadian Forces monitor illegal fishing activity in Pacific.
[SatNews – 10/07/2009]

Iridium is staging a comeback, goes public 10 years after chapter 11 bankruptcy; can Pentagon demand and other niche services including hosted payload keep it going as it faces satellite replacement requirements?
[BusinessWeek – 10/06/2009]

ORBCOMM and Sierra Wireless enter agreement to integrate Sierra Wireless’s M2M services platform within ORBCOMM’s satellite web services portal.
[TMCnet – 10/05/2009]

Harris subsidiary Maritime Communication Services launches iDirect Evolution network to support broadband IP services for its maritime customer Carnival Corporation.
[PRNewswire – 10/06/2009]

China’s late September announcements that it will build and launch communications satellites for Bolivia and Laos may be followed by plans to build satellites for Ecuador, Myanmar, and Vietnam, as well as some African countries.
[AsiaTimes – 10/07/2009]

Iran claims plans to launch astronauts into space in future.
[SatNews – 10/05/2009]

NSR free webinar will discuss the coming surge in launches of satellites for the mobile satellite services sector – three LEO constellations totaling 128 satellites and another 23 MEO and GEO satellites could be launched in next six years – market demand equation will tilt strongly toward supply side.
[NSR free webinar – October 20, 2009]

WBMSAT PS – Satellite Communications Consulting Services

We’ve been waiting for a satcom smartphone for a while now. Last week, AT&T announced a deal with TerreStar:

In the midst of a barrage (literally) of fall phone announcements, AT&T and TerreStar managed to stand apart from the pack on Wednesday with their announcement of an integrated cellular satellite smartphone. The TerreStar Genus will use AT&T’s network, but will also be able to access an all-IP satellite service when cellular coverage isn’t available. You’ll be able to use the phone in the United States, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and coastal waters.

With a QWERTY keyboard and a candy bar design, the Genus resembles many a Windows Mobile device (it runs the same OS). Feature details ares slim at this point, but we know that the handset will offer Bluetooth, a touch screen, Wi-Fi, and GPS. Pricing is to be announced, though the Genus will only be released to government customers. Phone Scoop says that AT&T is working on a consumer variant as well.

TerreStar Genus Specifications:

• Size: 118.8 mm x 64.8 mm x 19.25 mm
• Display: 2.6-inch touch screen, QVGA resolution
• Satellite & Terrestrial: 2000-2010 MHz, 2190-2200 MHz S-band
• Terrestrial: 850/900/1800/1900 MHz
• OS: Windows Mobile 6.5 Professional
• 100MB internal memory
• 3 megapixel camera
• QWERTY Keyboard
•  Bluetooth
• WiFi
• GPS
• Micro-USB connector
• microSD card slot
• 1400 mAh battery

It runs Windows Mobile. *yawn* Even Blackberry is better than WinMo.

You know, I don’t care for it. Would I want satcom back-up? Yes. Give up my iPhone? No. Wait a minute…

Now that’s a hot idea: build the satcom capability into an iPhone. Now that’s a good enhancement. Might as well add a special feature: bypassing Edge service and connecting directly to satellite. I’d pay extra for that.

 I can just picture it now…

Viasat announces it is buying WildBlue Communications for $568M in cash and stock.

[TheStreet.com  – 10/01/2009]

Thales Alenia Space signs contract with APT Satellite Company Limited to design and build APSTAR 7, to provide broadcasting and communications services over the Asia Pacific, Africa, Middle East, and part of Europe.
[SatNews – 10/01/2009]

Ariane 5 delivers two payloads to orbit; Amazonas 2 for Spain’s HISPASAT, the COMSATBw-1 for Germany.
[SatNews – 10/01/2009]

EGNOS, a free satellite navigation network, is launched by the European Union, intended to help pilots, drivers, and blind people by fine tuning GPS accuracy to within 2 meters..
[SatNews – 10/01/2009]

Terrestar Genus hybrid satellite/cell phone is coming to AT&T.
[Digital Trends – 10/01/2009]

Comtech EFData gets $1.1M order from U.S. government for equipment to support the government’s satellite-based communications infrastructure.
[Newsday – 10/01/2009]

TeleCommunications Systems gets $11.7M contract from U.S. Army to provide additional Secret Internet Protocal Router and Non-secure Int ernet Protocal Router FSAT systems to the United States Forces Afghanistan.
[Sys-Con – 10/01/2009]

Soyuz TMA-16 launch carries Jeffrey Williams and Maxim Suraev of the 21st space station crew into space for a six month stay aboard the International Space Station.
[SatNews – 09/30/2009]

B-52 bombers will be getting a new satellite communications system, to be developed and installed by Boeing.
[Minot  Daily News – 09/30/2009]

NSS-12 satellite, the first satellite built by Space Systems/Loral for SES NEW SKIES, is delivered to Kourou launch base for October 29 scheduled launch.
[TMCnet – 09/30/2009]

THOR 6, aTelenor’s latest satellite, arrives safely at Guiana Spaceport In Kourou for scheduled end of October launch.
[SatNews – 09/29/2009]

Terrestar will be able to deliver the most advanced communications services over a large area using a single satellite instead of multiple satellites using 18-meter antenna deflector built and successfully deployed by Harris.
[TMCnet -09/29/2009]

KVH TracPhone FleetBroadband systems receive new "505" emergency calling service which routes calls directly to Coast Guard rescue centers worldwide.
[PRNewswire – 09/28/2009]

China plans to build and launch a communications satellite for Laos.
[RedOrbit – 09/27/2009]

WBMSAT PS – Satellite Communications Consulting Services

Good move by ViaSat in intending to buy WildBlue:

ViaSat will pay $443 million cash and use $125 million of newly issued ViaSat shares to buy WildBlue. The cash flow from each company is expected to cover financing for the transaction.

Liberty Media will appoint a board member to ViaSat as part of the acquisition.

WildBlue’s other shareholders include Intelsat, Tennenbaum Capital Partners, the National Rural Telecommunications Cooperative, and Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers.

ViaSat technology helps power the WildBlue service already, and the two companies have worked together for more than a decade. ViaSat CEO Mark Dankberg said the company will launch a satellite, ViaSat1, in 2011 that will allow for a major expansion in the number of customers WildBlue can serve.

WildBlue CEO David Leonard agreed in a written statement about the deal.

“With the addition of ViaSat-1 capacity to our network, we believe we can grow our subscriber base to become a top 10 broadband ISP in the U.S. and expand further domestically and internationally,” he said.

ViaSat has decent cash flow, as does WildBlue. Having more Ka-band capacity coming in to their inventory in a couple of years will work wonders for acquiring new customers.  Need detail? Check it out here.