Eutelsat wins contract for Mexico’s StarTV

Eutelsat has secured a contract to provide the satellite capacity for new Mexican DTH pay TV service StarTV.

The new service will launch this month in the Mexican state of Zacatecas and other parts of the country, replacing the TVZac platform that has been available regionally through microwave distribution. To support its new phase of expansion into DTH, StarTV has signed a multi-year agreement with Eutelsat Americas for capacity on the Eutelsat 117 West A and Eutelsat 117 West B satellites at 116° West. Eutelsat 117 West B will launch and co-locate with the existing West A satellite in 2016.

StarTV plans to bring new pay TV packages to the Mexican market featuring well-known national and international channels and partnering with local distributors. The new platform will begin to operate with 50 channels.

“Thanks to the Telecommunications Reform carried out by the Mexican government and the drive of the Federal Institute of Telecommunications to promote competition, there is an opportunity to provide an alternative satellite TV service. As a socially responsible company we want to continue to contribute to technological development and access to information in our country, offering quality television in the spirit of TVZac, with the support of our subscribers. Eutelsat has been a key ally and has the coverage and capacity that we need to guarantee the best service to our customers both today and in the future. Working hand-in-hand, we are excited by the prospect of consolidating our place in the Mexican pay-TV industry,” said Julio Di-Bella, CEO of Stargroup, the owner of StarTV.

Patricio Northland, CEO of Eutelsat Americas, said: “The development of DTH services in the Americas is a strategic objective for Eutelsat. We are delighted to win the trust of StarTV as a new player in Mexico and to leverage our prime video neighbourhood to broaden the pay TV offer in Mexico and beyond.”