Eutelsat to showcase satellite VOD, HbbTV and Ka-Sat

Satellite operator Eutelsat will use IBC to showcase new satellite video-on-demand services, interactive HbbTV applications and new applications on its Ka-Sat satellite.

In advance of the upcoming launch of satellite-delivered VOD, Eutelsat will showcase new solutions at IBC designed to complement the linear offer of channels broadcast on the Fransat platform. Fransat broadcasts DTT channels via the Atlantic Bird 3 satellite to homes in France located beyond the range of terrestrial DTT reception.

SelecTV, a subsidiary of TV Num, will showcase the decoder for a satellite push VOD solution which will be launched later this year to broadcast content to user hard disks equipped with 500GB of storage capacity. SelecTV will have two complementary offers, Selection, a subscription on-demand service with a choice of series, documentaries, family, music and youth programming and La Séance, a transactional VOD service offering films four months after cinema release. A demonstration will also be running on the Logiways stand (Stand 2.D40).

A display on Eutelsat’s stand will show a pilot of satellite distribution of the Arte +7 service. The demonstration will enable Arte programmes to be delivered via satellite to a user hard disk connected to a satellite set-top-box produced by Aston.

Access to Arte +7 will be shown using push VOD software developed by Quadrille that specialises in VOD networks, and installed in the set-top-box and at the Fransat uplink platform at Eutelsat’s teleport near Paris.
Eutelsat is also taking its KabelKiosk cable platform into a new interactive phase with HbbTV-based services which are scheduled to launch in the coming weeks.

Services available in the new KabelKiosk interaktiv offer will include VOD, catch-up TV, access to news databases and local information. VOD services will be based on a platform operated by Rovi that specialises in delivering premium entertainment.

Individual channels delivered by KabelKiosk will also be able to use KabelKiosk interaktiv for catch-up TV, VOD, EPG services and red button applications for multiple value added services. Users will benefit from this portfolio of interactive solutions via a set-top or a connected TV. A full working prototype system will be displayed live at IBC using an HbbTV set-top.

HbbTV services via satellite from Arte and France Télévisions will also be demonstrated through the Fransat platform on the new Samsung (UE46D8000) connected TV with integrated satellite tuner.
Three months after the Ka-Sat satellite went live, Eutelsat is ready to launch new products to join the new-generation Tooway broadband service which has been rolling out since May and will be shown live on the Eutelsat stand.

Using Ka-Sat, an IP-based satellite newsgathering service called NewsSpotter will be unveiled at IBC with a live daily demonstration. As a complement to traditional SNG services in C and Ku-bands, NewsSpotter will enable broadcasters and news agencies to deliver more from the field at low cost, further diversifying live news reporting.

The NewsSpotter service will use light and compact Ka-band terminals. The motorised auto-aligning equipment will be transportable in a suitcase or installed on very small vehicles. Delivering up to 20Mbps on the uplink and up to 50 Mbps on the downlink, it will enable a number of SD or HD feeds to be routed in parallel to multiple IP addresses, according to the operator. From the end of 2011, users will be able to reserve bandwidth online with immediate booking applications or on a pre-planned basis for a guaranteed reservation.

An SNG vehicle equipped to show the benefits of NewsSpotter will be located in front of hall 1 area OE 112. Live demonstrations will take place during the show, including three daily performances.

Finally, in partnership with the World Teleport Association (WTA), Eutelsat is hosting an industry discussion on Ka-Band and the Future of Television, moderated by Louis Zacharilla, director of development at the WTA, on September 10 at 16:30 on the Eutelsat stand.

Eutelsat will be exhibiting at IBC on Stand 1.D59