Russia’s leading pay-TV operator Tricolor says it has just saved satellite broadcasting in the country.
While a bold statement and possibly an exaggeration, it is certainly worth a closer look.
Tricolor Ultra, which it launched at the beginning of this month, is described as a “large scale broadcasting project” on the Russian Express-AT1 satellite at 56 degrees East. Its main significance, according to Tricolor, is that it provides “exceptional safety” from outside interference.
Put simply, given the satellite’s Russian ownership, it is less likely be affected by sanctions imposed on Russian satellite-delivered TV services. It will also be less vulnerable to alleged actions by a neighbouring state, namely Ukraine.
Tricolor says that it had to make drastic decisions to maintain the quality of its product. Besides investing in a new teleport in Siberia, it now has at its disposal 20 transponders with a capacity of almost 700 MHz. This will allow it to operate Tricolor Ultra, offering viewers over 300 channels, a third of which will be in HD and Ultra HD.
Significantly, interference attacks on Russian satellite TV services have reportedly been taking place since the beginning of the year. This summer Tricolor undertook a study in which it asked subscribers what they believed the causes of these were and over 50% of respondents cited “external attacks”, with the second reason being “problems with the satellite”. It then went on to advise those living in Kaliningrad, which borders on Poland and the Baltic states, to switch to Express AT-1.
There are of course other pay-TV operators in Russia besides Tricolor and it now remains to be seen what actions, if any, will be taken by the likes of MTS and the Orion Group of companies.
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