Canal Plus Overseas takes capacity with SES for Africa

Canal Plus  Overseas, the international subsidiary of French pay-TV operator Canal Plus, has contracted multiple transponders and signed a long-term agreement for its subsidiary Canal Plus Afrique to distribute the CanalSat pay-TV service in Africa over the SES-4 satellite at 338 degrees East.

The new contract with SES includes renewed and additional capacity and will allow Canal Plus Overseas to extend its offer and migrate the pay TV bouquet from the current NSS-7 spacecraft to the upcoming SES-4, without changing the orbital position and without a repointing of customer dishes.

SES-4 has been built by Space System/Loral and will be launched on board an ILS/Proton booster from Baikonur, Kazakhstan, in the fourth quarter of this year. The satellite  carries 52 C-band transponders as well as 72 Ku-band transponders and as such will be the largest satellite in the SES satellite fleet. SES-4 will replace NSS-7 spacecraft, which will be redeployed elsewhere.