US general entertainment channel 4KUniverse makes its international debut this week, as Astra satellite operator SES begins distribution of the Ultra HD service to Swisscom TV, the IPTV platform of Swiss telco Swisscom with 1.45 million customers.
Swisscom is adding 4KUniverse to its expanding Ultra HD offering which already includes a growing channel line-up, video-on-demand and live sports events.
4KUniverse was first introduced earlier this year on the SES Ultra HD platform in North America which now features 10 channels offering a wide range of programming from adventure and travel to space exploration, sports and documentaries.
SES’s Ultra HD platform in North America continues to grow as over 30 cable and IPTV operators of all sizes, with a collective audience of more than 10 million subscribers, have initiated trials of the solution across their networks. Several operators have already launched commercial Ultra HD subscriber packages earlier this year, marking a historic first in the US.
“The SES Ultra HD platform has played a tremendous role in the overall acceleration of Ultra HD and the rapid development of 4KUniverse which has grown quickly from a strategic idea to a 24-hour 4K cable TV channel in little more than a year,” said Matthew Mancinelli, CEO of 4KUniverse. “We look forward to 4KUniverse being enjoyed in TV households across North America in what promises to be a breakout year in 2018 for the SES Ultra HD solution, and we are very excited about our international growth starting with Swisscom in Switzerland.”
Steve Corda, Vice-President of Business Development for SES Video, added: “By leveraging our global distribution infrastructure behind the successful SES Ultra HD platform, SES is well positioned to deliver quality 4K content to markets anywhere in the world. The delivery of 4KUniverse to Swisscom represents a natural extension of our North American solution and opens the door to additional growth beyond the US.”
SES’s Ultra HD platform currently comprises NASA TV UHD, Fashion One 4K, C4K360, UHD1, 4KUniverse, Funbox UHD, Nature Relaxation 4K, the SES demo channel and two HDR channels: Travelxp 4K and Insight TV.
4KUniverse offers original TV series, movies, documentaries, sports and primetime programming in 4K resolution. The 24-hour service is available as a linear TV channel via cable/satellite and as a streaming subscription video-on-demand service across OTT apps.
