Strong Media SAL-Off-Shore (SMO) has signed a multi-year contract with Eutelsat for capacity on Eutelsat 16A to deploy a range of English, French and Arabic-speaking television services over Sub-Saharan Africa.
Ma Tele and Shashatee, SMO’s new French and Arabic-speaking pay-TV services are gearing up for launch in April, joining the established My TV service that has been resized and rebranded as My TV Smart on Eutelsat 16A, taking advantage of the satellite’s powerful African footprint.
Ma Tele will initially target potential subscribers in Côte d’Ivoire and the Democratic Republic of Congo with an offer of close to 30 channels, including its own flagship Africa-specific channels and AB Sat’s BIS Africa service, complemented by a rich line-up of unencrypted (free-to-air) channels.
Strong is one of the leading and most experienced providers of consumer digital satellite TV receiving equipment, with its own operations for distribution, technical support and after-sales service in a number of Sub-Saharan Africa countries.
Samer Mourad, COO of SMO, declared: “We are excited to announce the launch of our new services for Sub-Saharan Africa. We selected EutelsatT 16A for its solid video neighbourhoodand significant audience penetration in our target markets. We are more than confident that our cooperation with Eutelsat will bring the desired added value to the services we intend to deploy over the region.”
Michel Azibert, Chief Commercial and Development Officer at Eutelsat, said: “Our 16° East neighbourhood is fast ramping up to be a key point of reference for a diverse range of African and international content. With STRONG’s skills at assembling compelling digital content and ensuring viewers get access to affordable and quality consumer equipment we are well placed for a new phase of growth. We look forward to collaborating with STRONG on accelerating access to digital entertainment in Africa.”