The Hague, The Netherlands, September 9, 2002 – New Skies Satellites N.V. (AEX, NYSE: NSK), the global satellite communications company, today announced that Scott J. Sprague, a telecommunications sales executive with more than 20 years of experience, has joined the company as its new Senior Vice President of Global Sales.
Based at New Skies’ headquarters in The Hague, Sprague will lead the company’s global sales team located throughout eight regional offices around the world. His primary responsibilities will include generating revenues across all New Skies products and services, providing additional senior level customer interaction, and assessing and developing alternate sales channels.
Sprague will report to Rudo Jockin, Executive Vice President, Sales & Marketing. In addition to providing overall leadership of New Skies’ global sales and marketing team, Jockin will place increased focus on the strategic marketing of the company’s existing capacity and services as well as the development and marketing of new value-added offerings.
“I am delighted that New Skies has had the good fortune of adding to its senior management team a high-caliber, highly regarded and experienced sales executive and senior sales manager. I look for Scott to take a hands-on approach to supporting our clients as well as leading our global sales team,” said Dan Goldberg, New Skies’ Chief Executive Officer. “With Scott on board, Rudo can focus more on leading our product development and marketing efforts, developing and managing the innovative new value-added services our customers require, and ensuring we remain a leading provider of global satellite-based services.”
“Scott’s arrival will ensure that, with the new advanced capacity we are bringing online this year through the launch of NSS-6 and next year with NSS-8, our sales organization has the invaluable operational and strategic leadership necessary to aggressively pursue every opportunity,” Goldberg continued.
“I am very pleased to be part of a truly global enterprise that is keenly focused on providing customers with the highest-quality satellite services in the industry,” Sprague said. “I am deeply impressed with the professionalism and dedication of New Skies’ sales team. I look forward to applying the lessons I have learned over the past 20 years in the highly competitive terrestrial-based telecommunications industry to the exciting and fast-paced satellite services market.”
Sprague joins New Skies from KPNQwest, where he was Vice President of Enterprise Sales. Prior to KPNQwest, he was Vice President of Channel Management for Infonet Service Corporation, where he provided leadership to a European-based channel management team focused on generating global networking revenues through distributors, affiliates, direct sales and alternate channels. Sprague, in his more than 20 years at AT&T, also held a range of senior sales positions, including General Manager of Technical Sales in the provider services division.
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. The company also has two spacecraft under construction, which are planned to serve the Americas and Asia from two new orbital locations. In line with its growth strategy, 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.
