THE HAGUE, Netherlands, November 13, 2002 – New Skies Satellites N.V. (AEX, NYSE: NSK), the global satellite communications company, announced that its pan-Asian satellite, NSS-6, was shipped successfully to Kourou, French Guiana, and will now begin final preparations for an early December launch aboard the Ariane 44L launcher.
NSS-6 is an all Ku-band spacecraft with Ka-band uplink capabilities that will operate from New Skies’ new orbital slot at 95 degrees east longitude. From this prime location, NSS-6 will cover all of Asia, Australia, India, the Middle East and Southern Africa, a footprint that is home to two-thirds of the world’s population. The satellite is New Skies’ second new spacecraft of the year, following the successful launch of NSS-7 in April 2002.
“The final preparations for the launch of NSS-6 are underway and we are gearing up for one of the last voyages of the Ariane 4 rocket, which will place in orbit some of the most flexible and high-powered satellite capacity serving Asia today,” said Steve Stott, New Skies’ chief technology officer. “With the spacecraft now in Kourou, we’re looking forward to the exciting prospects NSS-6 will offer New Skies and, most importantly, our current and potential customers throughout the region.”
NSS-6 is an A2100AX model satellite built by Lockheed Martin Commercial Space Systems. The Ku-band satellite features 60 transponders across six coverage beams: Australia, the Middle East and Southern Africa, the Indian Subcontinent, China, Northeast Asia and Southeast Asia. Up to 15 of the transponders can be flexibly assigned to any one of the satellite’s beams, allowing New Skies to match regional demand.
The comprehensive, high-power Ku-band coverage of NSS-6 and New Skies’ complementary in-orbit global fleet allow for video, data, Internet and other broadband transmissions throughout Asia, while also offering seamless connectivity between the Eastern and Western Hemispheres.
NSS-6 is capable of delivering digital video distribution and contribution services, satellite newsgathering, Intra- and Inter-regional enterprise networks, government services, direct-to-home platforms, telephony transmissions, as well as a multitude of IP-based multimedia applications, including two-way broadband Internet access for businesses, e-learning, telemedicine and digital cinema.
About New Skies Satellites
New Skies Satellites (AEX, NYSE: NSK) is one of only four fixed satellite communications companies with truly global satellite coverage, offering video, voice, data and Internet communications services to a range of telecommunications carriers, broadcasters, large corporations and Internet service providers around the world. New Skies has five satellites in geosynchronous orbit and ground facilities around the world. In addition to NSS-6, the company has another spacecraft under construction, which is planned to serve the Americas from a new orbital location and the company has secured certain rights to make use of additional orbital positions, including four serving the Americas. New Skies is headquartered in The Hague, The Netherlands, and has offices in London, Johannesburg, New Delhi, São Paulo, Singapore, Sydney and Washington, D.C. Additional information is available at: www.newskies.com.
