FalconStream to employ NewSat DVB-RSC hub and New Skies’ NSS-6 satellite to provide latest broadband services to ISPs, SOHOs, SMEs and consumers
CAIRO, Egypt, May 6, 2004 – New Skies Satellites N.V. (AEX, NYSE: NSK), the global satellite communications company, and KMS (Kuwait Messaging Services)/FalconStream, a Kuwaiti information technology firm that provides Internet services via satellite, today announced a new two-way satellite IP hub for the Middle East, which will access New Skies’ NSS-6 satellite. The hub will be provided by Australian satellite broadband specialist, NewSat.
FalconStream has also signed for additional capacity on NSS-6 to offer expanded and more advanced broadband Internet access services through the new two-way hub to small offices, corporate enterprises and consumer households throughout the Middle East, the Indian Subcontinent and North Africa.
The new hub will employ DVB-RCS technology and NSS-6’s high-powered Ku-band capacity to enable high-speed, two-way IP transmissions between customer sites and the hub at speeds up to 1.15 Mbps on the uplink and 60 Mbps down, resulting in service15 to 20 times faster than traditional broadband access technologies. The two-way DVB-RCS technology bypasses the need for expensive infrastructure and significantly expands the potential service area to include virtually any location with the satellite’s footprint.
Mr. Ahmed Mekky, KMS/FalconStream’s vice president, said: “The new two-way hub will incorporate the latest technology to serve as a catalyst for the development and expansion of high-speed broadband access for small offices/home offices, small and medium sized enterprises and consumers throughout the Middle East as well as North Africa and the Indian Subcontinent.
“Through the combination of New Skies’ advanced resources and position as the leading global provider of satellite-delivered IP services; NewSat’s advanced broadband technology; and our distribution channels and knowledge of the regional market, we are confident not only in the success of the service but its contribution to the continuing development of this rapidly growing region of the world.”
Hussein Oteifa, New Skies’ senior director of sales for the Middle East, said: “The Middle East is growing faster than the existing communications infrastructure can support. Businesses require access to reliable communications services that use state-of-the-art, proven technology to compete regionally and globally. Our strategic collaboration with FalconStream and NewSat will go a long way to quickly and efficiently extending a modern IT infrastructure throughout the entire Middle East.”
Traditional one-way satellite services require remote customer sites to be connected via terrestrial wireless technology to a central Point of Presence (PoP), which in turn accesses the Internet backbone using satellite. This configuration, while still extending the web to locations not adequately served by fiber optic networks, limits the number of sites and their distance from an Internet service provider’s central PoP. Using new two-way technology, ISPs and carriers can connect individual sites directly to the hub via satellite regardless of their location within NSS-6’s footprint, enabling extremely remote, highly mobile and cost-effective broadband Internet access.
FalconStream initially signed a long-term multi-transponder, multi-satellite agreement with New Skies to offer one-way high-speed Internet access services to more than 2,000 customer sites in May 2003.
About NSS-6
NSS-6 is equipped with 60 x 36 MHz-equivalent Ku-band transponders. From 95 degrees east longitude, its six broad Ku-band beams offer expansive coverage of India, China, the Middle East (including Cyprus and Southern Africa), Australia, Southeast Asia and Northeast Asia. The satellite is capable of delivering virtually any type of communications services, including video distribution and contribution, direct-to-home broadcasts, Internet backbone connectivity, corporate enterprise networking, telephony and data transmissions, and emerging broadband applications.
About KMS/FalconStream
KMS/FalconStream, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Kuwait Messaging Services Company (KMSC), commenced commercial operations in January 2000. In the first three months of commercial service, KMS/FalconStream entered the markets of Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Yemen, Algeria, Jordan, and Egypt. KMS/FalconStream attributes its beginnings to the primary mission of KMSC to provide management consulting, systems integration, and professional services in information technology, data communications services and high-speed Internet services via satellite.
About New Skies Satellites (AEX, NYSE: NSK)
New Skies Satellites is one of only four fixed satellite communications companies with truly global satellite coverage, offering video, data, voice and Internet communications services to a range of telecommunications carriers, broadcasters, large corporations, Internet service providers and government entities around the world. New Skies has five satellites in orbit, ground facilities around the world and one additional spacecraft under construction. The company also has secured certain rights to make use of additional orbital positions for future growth. New Skies is headquartered in The Hague, The Netherlands, and has offices in Beijing, Hong Kong, New Delhi, São Paulo, Singapore, Sydney and Washington, D.C. Additional information is available at www.newskies.com.
