New international Armenian DTH service launches on Hotbird

A new pay TV service aimed at Armenian-speakers, Shant TV, will launch on July 15 on Eutelsat’s Hotbird platform.

Armenian commercial broadcaster Shant TV has signed a multi-year contract with Eutelsat to make the all-HD service available to home sin Europe, the Middle East and European parts of Russia.

The service, which will be available for a minimum subscription of €5 a month, will feature channels Shant Premium, Armenia Premium and Shant Music. Shant TV will be available internationally to DTH homes with a suitable box as well as via cable and IPTV networks.

Eutelsat said that there are about four million Armenian-speakers living in the Hotbird footprint, who will be able to view content including films, music and local adaptations of popular international formats such as X-Factor and Who Wants to be a Millionaire?

Arthur Yezekyan, president and founder of Shant TV LLC, said: “We know already from the results of our survey that 50% of the audience of Shant Premium outside Armenia watches our channel from Eutelsat’s Hotbird position. This was decisive in our choice of Hotbird for distributing our new offer. Our thanks go to Eutelsat for their highly valuable support and consultancy, especially for technical and marketing activities.”

Michel Azibert, Eutelsat’s commercial and development director, said: “The exceptionally broad coverage of Hotbird and an offer of 1,000 channels in 30 languages make it the point of reference for broadcasters seeking to reach dispersed communities. We are delighted to support Shant TV’s effort to leverage Hotbird’s unique strengths to reach Armenian viewers across multiple countries. The transition from Standard Broadcasting of a single channel to a multi-channel HD platform also demonstrates the accelerating trend towards High Definition. Nowhere is this more apparent than at our Hotbird that already hosts 280 HD channels.”