TELENOR BROADCAST PRESS DAY – OSLO. Buoyed by keen interest from Central & East Europe, Telenor is studying the possibility of a further broadcast satellite to be positioned at its One West orbital slot. Cato Halsaa, CEO, Telenor Satellite Broadcasting said the company had a good list of prospects for Thor 6, scheduled for launch in Q2 2009, and there was a prime opportunity to be had.
Speaking to Broadband TV News, Halsaa said there was a distinct possibility that the 20 transponders for the Central & East Europe markets would be booked by the end of this year. The original projection was that the 16 Nordic facing transponders would be leased first, but this has turned around. Ten of the 36 Thor 6 transponders have already been leased to Telenor’s long-term partner Intelsat, which also holds frequency rights at one degree West.
Halsaa admitted that revenues from CEE remain small; 70% of the division’s revenues come from the Nordic region and only between a third and a half of the remainder can be attributed to CEE.
