Liberty Sports Group Inks Intelsat Deal

Liberty Sports Group has signed a multi-year contract with Intelsat for satellite capacity to distribute its three regional sports networks to viewers across America.

Utilizing capacity on Intelsat’s Galaxy 17 satellite, located at 97º W, FSN Northwest, FSN Pittsburgh and FSN Rocky Mountain (and sub-region FSN Utah) will broadcast their live event schedules and local programming, including a full-time HD channel for each network, to millions of sports fans across the country. The Intelsat Galaxy 17 satellite, a premiere sports neighborhood within Intelsat’s valuable Galaxy fleet, currently transmits the MLB Network, FOX Sports and the Big Ten Network to thousands of cable headends throughout North America, Central America and the Caribbean.

“Liberty Sports Group requires a distribution platform that provides business growth, strategic penetration that reaches the sports fan and seamless transmission of our content,” explains Brian McHale, Liberty Sports Group’s CTO. “With viewers’ growing demand for sports programming, delivering our networks on Intelsat’s Galaxy 17 satellite ensures we will reach cable and DTH communities with the highest quality signal.”

“The Intelsat Galaxy neighborhood represents one of the most coveted franchises in the fixed satellite services industry, offering broadcasters and programmers strategic access for transmission of news, sports and entertainment,” adds Peter Ostapiuk, Intelsat’s Regional Vice President, Cable & Emerging Media. “Intelsat continues to lead in the distribution of sports programming, delivering content to fans around the world.”

Intelsat will be celebrating its “20 years of HD” and exhibiting in Hall C, Booth #4937 and in the Outdoor Pavilion, Booth #E404 at NAB 2009.