PARIS, May 30, 2013 /PRNewswire/ --
Romania's digital broadcasting
landscape shifted into a new gear this month with the launch of
Freesat, a new TV platform available from the EUTELSAT 16A
satellite operated by Eutelsat Communications (Euronext Paris:
ETL).
Freesat is a Direct-to-Home platform of Standard Digital and
High Definition channels available for a yearly subscription of
only 99 lei (approximately €23) and a one-off investment in a
conditional access smartcard. It assembles Romania's most popular public and private TV
channels including TVR 1, TVR 2, Pro TV, AcasaTv, ProCinema,
Sport.ro, KanalD, Prima, NationalTV, FavoritTV, TVR HD TVR 3, TVR
News, TVR International, Etno TV, Taraf TV and WEST TV.
International free-to-air content can also be received from
EUTELSAT 16A and Eutelsat's adjacent HOT BIRD satellites.
The arrival of this accessible, no ties platform will help
accelerate the transition to digital for the 3.5 million homes in
Romania who are still not reaping
the benefits of image quality and choice afforded by digital
standards. Freesat also further anchors Eutelsat's 16° East
neighbourhood, already the broadcasting slot of choice for many
Romanian national and regional public and private channels, in the
country's broadcasting landscape.
"Our objective is to give Romanians access to digital
television choice at a great price with the highest quality and to
reach the maximum number of homes using Eutelsat's
established neighbourhood at 16°
East," declared Serban Belenes, General Manager
of Freesat. "We believe
that Freesat's proposal of
no monthly bill and no commitment is a key
asset. With 99 lei, you have your favourite channels for a
full year - no worries, no subscription."
Jean-François Leprince-Ringuet, Chief Commercial Officer of
Eutelsat, added: "We welcome the launch of this new platform
that will propel digital broadcasting forward
in Romania and help prepare the
ground for analogue switch-off of
the national terrestrial
broadcasting network. The performance
and coverage of EUTELSAT 16A, combined
with the community of Romanian
channels already on
board, make it a natural choice
for Freesat. Broadcasters now have a unique
platform for reaching into television homes
across Romania and we look forward to
sharing with Freesat our
experience in other markets to make this
new venture a success."
Freesat can be ordered from local distributors in Romania. More details can be obtained at
http://www.freesat.ro.
About Eutelsat Communications
(http://www.eutelsat.com)
Eutelsat Communications is the holding company of Eutelsat S.A.
With capacity commercialised on 31 satellites delivering reach of
Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Asia,
significant parts of the Americas and the Asia-Pacific, Eutelsat Communications
(Euronext Paris: ETL, ISIN code: FR0010221234) is one of the
world's leading satellite operators. As of 31 March 2013, Eutelsat's satellites were
broadcasting more than 4,600 television channels to over 200
million cable and satellite homes in Europe, the Middle
East and Africa. The
Group's satellites also provide a wide range of services for TV
contribution, corporate networks and fixed and mobile broadband
markets. Headquartered in Paris,
Eutelsat and its subsidiaries employ over 780 commercial, technical
and operational professionals from 30 countries.
SOURCE Eutelsat Communications
