SES, Samsung Mark Ultra HD First With Live Broadcast of Linkin Park Concert Via Satellite

SES S.A., in collaboration with Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd, will be broadcasting live the American rock band Linkin Park concert in Ultra HD at the orbital position of Astra 19.2 degrees East. The Linkin Park concert on November 19 at the O2 World Berlin will be the world’s first live concert to be broadcast via satellite encoded in the HEVC standard with a resolution of 3840 x 2160 pixels, 50 frame per second and a colour depth of 10 bit.

It will be available exclusively on the Astra Ultra HD demo channel. The live broadcast will begin at 9 pm CET and can be received with Samsung 2014 Ultra HD screens. SES Platform Services, a subsidiary of SES, will manage the encoding of the content.

Linkin Park is one of the most successful and popular rock bands of our time. On their current tour, the Warner Music band is presenting their hits and songs from their latest album, “The Hunting Party,” with a visually stunning stage show.

“We are honoured that Samsung has chosen to work with SES to broadcast a live concert exclusively on our demo channel, as this demonstrates Samsung’s faith in our satellites and our technical capabilities,” said Ferdinand Kayser, Chief Commercial Officer at SES. “The successful broadcast of a live concert will mark another milestone in the development of the Ultra HD eco system and power the way for more live content to be broadcast live via satellite in the coming years.”

SES Broadband Services to Deliver High-Speed Satellite Broadband to 36 Villages in Germany
SES Broadband Services, a wholly-owned subsidiary of SES S.A., has won the contracts to provide its Astra Connect for communities satellite broadband service to 36 German villages located across the Eifel district of Bitburg-Prüm.

The contracts were put out for public tenders, with financial support from the Eifel district of Bitburg-Prüm, the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development and the regional Improvement of Agricultural Structures and Coastal Protection programme.

The plan is for all broadband access networks in Bitburg-Prüm to be rolled out by the end of May 2015.   Internet Service Provider Orbitcom is SES Broadband Services’ partner for the project and will be responsible for marketing, selling and managing the Astra Connect for communities solution as well as providing customer support to end users.

The Astra Connect for communities broadband service has already been rolled out in several parts of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. The solution uses a single satellite antenna installed as a central head-end, and the broadband connection is supplied to end users via Wi-Fi access. This provides all households within the head-end reach with internet access at speeds of up to 25Mbit/s.

“Improving broadband penetration in our area is essential, as fast and easy access to the internet ensures quality of life and competitiveness,” said District Administrator Dr. Joachim Streit. “Our communities need high speed internet, and expanding the broadband infrastructure nationwide is essential for both businesses and residents in rural areas.”

“We are honoured to have won the contracts and to assist in providing broadband access for all in the region. This will further demonstrate that satellite technology is a key solution to accelerating broadband roll-out,” said Patrick Biewer, Managing Director of SES Broadband Services.

SES Broadband Services, in cooperation with the Bitburg-Prüm administration, also hosted an information event in Bitburg to present the Astra Connect for communities broadband service solution and the planned service deployment for mayors on November 7.

SES Joins the Fight Against Ebola 
SES has launched on its fleet an Ebola-focused education channel to be broadcast via satellite in West Africa. The channel, called “Fight Ebola”, will be available to both free-to-air TV viewers and Pay TV subscribers and transmitted from the ASTRA 2F satellite at 28.2 degrees East and from SES-5 at 5 degrees East. It aims at informing populations in affected areas about the nature and dangers of the disease and how to fight it.

Part of West Africa is dealing with the worst Ebola outbreak in history.

The channel’s message emphasizes the fact that Ebola is spreading, that there is a great need to protect oneself as well as families and the entire community. The objective of “Fight Ebola” is to create an understanding of the disease through the broadcast of educational and factual content.

“Through the channel we hope to further educate people. Many people do not understand this disease and therefore, tragically, do not seek the medical care they need.  Fight Ebola broadcasts content to millions of people that need to be informed on the risks of Ebola. The content on the channel comes from multiple sources endorsed by the Luxembourg Ministry of Health”, said Ibrahima Guimba-Saidou, Senior Vice President Commercial Africa at SES.

The content contributions are courtesy of numerous international media, help organization and institutions such as UNICEF, Doctors Without Borders (MSF), and End Ebola Now.

The program also includes endorsements and appeals from British Premier League football players with West African origins such as Didier Drogba and John Obi Mikel from Chelsea FC, Samuel Eto’o and  Christian Atsu from Everton FC, Peter Odemwingie from Stock City FC and  Emmanuel Adebayor from Tottenham Hotspur.