Press release -
OSN partners with Eutelsat for more HD channels and sets stage for Ultra HD services in the Middle East and North Africa
OSN scales up resources at Eutelsat’s leading Middle East TV neighbourhood at 7/8° West
Paris, Dubai, 8 March 2016 – OSN, the leading pay-TV provider in the Middle East and North Africa, is ramping up capacity on the powerful EUTELSAT 8 West B satellite operated by Eutelsat Communications (NYSE Euronext Paris: ETL). Additional capacity at the Middle East’s flagship TV neighbourhood will support more expansion for OSN, including new High Definition channels and the introduction of Ultra HD services.
The new contract was announced today at CABSAT 2016, the broadcasting convention taking place in Dubai from March 8-10.
OSN will take advantage of the additional capacity to introduce Ultra HD services that will bring the most cutting-edge TV experience to viewers in the Middle East, offering true immersion with an image quality four times richer than Full HD. OSN also plans to ramp up its HD offer, with eight new channels[1] announced recently and several new premium and exclusive channels to be launched soon.
Building on its 10-year partnership with Eutelsat, OSN has built a platform of premium content broadcast exclusively from the 7/8° West video neighbourhood that reaches into homes from Morocco to the Gulf.
Commenting on the new contract, Mark Billinge, CTO, OSN said: “We are enthusiastic about this additional capacity which will allow us to offer superior TV quality to our viewers. Our plans to move into Ultra HD reflect our continuous ambition to raise the bar and be at the forefront of the latest TV technology.”
Michel Azibert, Eutelsat’s Deputy CEO and Chief Commercial & Development Officer, added: “Following the launch in August last year of the powerful EUTELSAT 8 West B satellite, this contract marks a new milestone in the growth story of the most popular satellite TV neighbourhood in the Middle East. We are honoured to celebrate 10 years of collaboration with OSN and are committed to furthering our longstanding presence and strong partnerships across the region, including playing our part in the roll-out of HD and the launch of Ultra HD.”
[1] OSN Yahala Cinema HD, OSN Movies Family HD, OSN First HD Home of HBO, H2 HD, BBC First HD, OSN Movies Family HD, Discovery Family HD and IDX HD
Topics
Meet Eutelsat at Cabsat 2016, Dubai World Trade Centre, 8-10 March:
Zabeel Hall Stand: ZB5-10
About OSN
OSN is the ultimate destination for the widest choice of brand new premium Western, Arabic, South Asian (Hindi, Urdu, Bengali, Malayalam and Tamil) and Filipino entertainment in the Middle East and Africa.
OSN is the home to over 150 channels and services filled with great value entertainment, offering viewers in the MENA region exclusive access to the latest blockbuster movies, top rated series, sports, documentaries, news, kid’s entertainment and live talk shows. The movie offering includes over a 100 uncut and uninterrupted movie premieres a month.
OSN boasts the most comprehensive portfolio of exclusive rights from all the major studios including Warner Brothers, Paramount, Fox, Disney, Sony, MGM, NBC Universal, HBO and DreamWorks and offers access to the world’s leading television brands including Disney channel, Sky News, Discovery Network and National Geographic.
Launched in August 2013, OSN Pehla brings the best of Bollywood movies and premium cricket, including exclusive telecast rights of international tournaments such as the ICC Cricket World Cup and Indian cricket, through leading sports channels OSN Sports Cricket HD and Ten Cricket.
As the leader in innovation, OSN has changed the TV viewing experience by bringing quality entertainment through 64 High Definition channels and is currently the only network offering a full HD bouquet of channels as well as 3D entertainment in the region.
OSN was the first to launch the OSN DVR HD; the regions first online TV platform, OSN Play; the regions first 3D, HD, internet enabled satellite receiver and recorder, OSN Plus HD and the region’s first VOD service, OSN on Demand offering viewers the opportunity to watch over 1000 movies and 52 latest seasons of the top series, all available in full HD quality and Dolby Digital sound.
September 2012 saw the launch of OSN’s rewards programme, OSN Privileges, offering subscribers money can’t buy experiences, special offers and premium prizes all year round.
Addressing the changing viewing habits of consumers across the region, in May 2014, OSN launched ‘GO’, an online TV service providing subscribers access to thousands of hours of premium entertainment, contract and commitment-free.
The OSN platform is owned and operated by Panther Media Group Limited; a company registered in DIFC, and is owned by KIPCO and Mawarid Group Limited.
Media contact:
Zahabia Motiwala
Communications Director,OSN
Dubai Media City, Dubai, UAE
+971 (0) 4 367 7084
About Eutelsat Communications
Established in 1977, Eutelsat Communications (Euronext Paris: ETL, ISIN code: FR0010221234) is one of the world's leading and most experienced operators of communications satellites. The company provides capacity on 40 satellites to clients that include broadcasters and broadcasting associations, pay-TV operators, video, data and Internet service providers, enterprises and government agencies.
Eutelsat’s satellites provide ubiquitous coverage of Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Asia-Pacific and the Americas, enabling video, data, broadband and government communications to be established irrespective of a user’s location.
Headquartered in Paris, with offices and teleports around the globe, Eutelsat represents a workforce of 1,000 men and women from 37 countries who are experts in their fields and work with clients to deliver the highest quality of service.
For more about Eutelsat please visit www.eutelsat.com
Press
Vanessa O’Connor Tel: + 33 1 53 98 37 91
voconnor@eutelsat.com
Marie-Sophie Ecuer Tel: + 33 1 53 98 37 91
mecuer@eutelsat.com
Violaine du Boucher Tel: + 33 1 53 98 37 91
vduboucher@eutelsat.com
Investors and analysts
Joanna Darlington Tel. : +33 1 53 98 35 30
jdarlington@eutelsat.com
Cédric Pugni Tel. : +33 1 53 98 35 30
cpugni@eutelsat.com
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