Deliver your content anywhere
Established in 1977, Eutelsat is one of the world’s leading and most experienced satellite operators. The company provides capacity on 37 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 the Middle East, Europe, Africa, Asia Pacific and the Americas, enabling video, data, broadband and government communications to be established irrespective of user location.
Longstanding Partnerships
Eutelsat has been present in the MENA region for over 30 years, but its key focus on broadcasting shifted gear 10 years ago with the specialisation of satellites for the region and Eutelsat’s collaboration with Nilesat in the 7/8° West orbital arc. Longstanding partnerships between Eutelsat, Gulfsat, Nilesat and anchor media groups, including MBC and OSN, have gained strong commercial success and are well placed for further expansion in the region. This led the company to open its own offices in Dubai, UAE, and to be closer to customers and their markets. In 2017, regional service provider NOORSAT also joined the group, combining in-depth market expertise with regional and global connectivity, creating a one-stop-shop for broadcast and data solutions.
Number One TV Distribution Platform
With a strong concentration of broadcasters and service providers in Dubai and the Gulf states, the broadcasting sector in MENA is vibrant and highly developed. Due to lack
of terrestrial networks, satellite
remains the unrivalled digital video infrastructure throughout the region with 59 million homes, or 94% of the market, receiving TV channels via satellite.
7/8° West is the leading broadcast neighbourhood in the MENA and has seen massive growth over the past four years, now reaching 90% of TV homes in the region. This was confirmed by Eutelsat’s TV Observatory, a multi-national analysis of TV reception trends, carried out in 2017 with independent market research specialist IPSOS. Over 56 million TV homes in a vast region from Morocco to the Gulf, receive over 1000 channels with a single small satellite dish. Growing by three million homes in the 12-month period, viewers are drawn to the neighbourhood for its exceptional line-up of Arabic and international channels, with best-in-class pay TV platforms and a high diversity of free-to-air content. Over half the channels broadcast exclusively from the 7/8° West position.
HD Setting the Trend
With the massive expansion in the number of television channels available to homes throughout the MENA region, Eutelsat helps channels manage their HD transition. There has been a noticeable shift in free-to-air channels with 150 now broadcasting in HD from 7/8° West, up 26% in the past 12 months. Image quality is increasingly important to audiences, as the acceleration in take-up of HD shows. In the MENA region, 46% of total TV homes now own an HDTV screen. Viewers at 7/8° West are leading this growth with an impressive 66% of homes HD-equipped.
Evolving User Experience
Viewing habits are diversifying as interaction and content on-demand is changing how, where and when audiences consume content. At the same time, linear TV is still the principal means of TV consumption across the region, enabling advertisers to reach millions of homes and content owners to build brand value and deliver sports, news and popular entertainment most efficiently.
Eutelsat’s new state-of-the-art hybrid content delivery solution, called Eutelsat CIRRUS, helps broadcasters meet increasing customer expectations for a flexible, seamless content experience across multiple screens. Delivering consistent quality to any screen, the fully supported solution combines the strengths of traditional DTH with next-generation features, reducing the technical and logistical challenges inherent in building a content distribution business.
