Newtec has delivered more than 110,000 units of its IP satellite modems for SES Broadband Services. The modems were used for Ka- and Ku-band services, Newtec said Monday in a news release (http://bit.ly/1nXtiYQ). Newtec helped SES extend coverage of the 20 Mbps Ka-band service into Germany, Italy and the U.K., it said.

DirecTV and Dish Network partnered with i360, a data and technology provider to the political community, on the satellite-TV companies’ effort to provide an addressable TV ad platform to political campaigns. I360 will provide “pre-matched voter and issue data for Republican and conservative campaigns,” the direct broadcast satellite companies said in a news release. The arrangement will allow campaigns and advocacy organizations “to target their TV ads at the household level using issue data contained in the i360 database,” they said. The companies announced this year that they would combine sales efforts to provide the platform (CD Jan 28 p6). With i360, the partnership, D2 Media Sales, allows campaigns to choose from more than 35 pre-matched segments focusing on voter registration, party affiliation, economic issues and other areas, they said.

Globalstar’s voice and data solution, Sat-Fi, is available. It lets customers use their current smartphones, tablets and laptops “to send and receive communications when traveling beyond cellular,” Globalstar said in a news release Monday (http://bit.ly/1l73NCH). With a smartphone app that enables connectivity between any Wi-Fi-enabled device and the Sat-Fi hot spot, users can send and receive email and SMS text messages and make voice calls from their own devices, it said.

Bigelow Aerospace urged the FCC to begin a proceeding to allocate spectrum for future commercial satellites. The rulemaking is needed for implementation of Bigelow’s plans “to provide access to on-orbit commercial research and development facilities for national space agencies, private companies and research organizations agencies,” Bigelow said in an ex parte filing posted Monday in docket 13-115 (http://bit.ly/1szrLQS). The commission also will need to address the regulatory classification and service rules applicable to crewed commercial space station operations, it said in a filing about a meeting with the FCC Office of Engineering and Technology and staff from the International Bureau.

Eutelsat announced a plan for a high-capacity triple-mission satellite. The satellite, Eutelsat 172B, “will support sustained demand for capacity for data, fixed and mobile broadband services as well as video,” Eutelsat said Thursday in a news release (http://bit.ly/1ioBXqJ). It will launch in 2017 to the 172 degrees east orbital position, it said. It also will host a C-band payload that will enhance service provided to existing customers and tap into new growth markets in Southeast Asia, it said.

Thaicom introduced commercial in-flight Ka-band connectivity services to provide broadband on Nok Air airlines. The carrier will provide Wi-Fi on its aircraft starting in August, Thaicom said Wednesday in a news release (http://bit.ly/1lDAfB4). Thaicom teamed up with Row 44 to implement the service for Nok Air passengers “to enhance the experience by giving access to broadband combined with video content,” it said.

Eurovision is beaming World Cup matches in HD and Ultra HD over SES satellites to an estimated 3 billion viewers in North America, Latin America, Europe and Asia, SES said Tuesday (http://bit.ly/1slsYev). Eurovision, run by the European Broadcasting Union, is distributing matches live in Ultra HD to its global network using SES’ NSS-806 satellite and its teleport in Manassas, Virginia, said a Tuesday SES news release. “Eurovision and the EBU are gearing up for one of the largest broadcast operations requirements in the history of the World Cup, now including Ultra HD content,” said Paolo Pusterla, Eurovision’s head of procurement. Live matches in Ultra HD “will allow consumers to catch a glimpse of the future of TV,” he said.

Chip makers MaxLinear and STMicroelectronics will demonstrate a multichannel Ultra HD set-top box and satellite server platform at the four-day BroadcastAsia show, which opens in Singapore Tuesday, the companies said Monday (http://bit.ly/1ltdGdQ). The platform, which uses High Efficiency Video Coding (HEVC) compression, is targeted at the growing number of satellite pay-TV operators looking to deliver broadcast 4K services, they said. Show attendees “can’t help but recognize that UHD is providing the next-level user experience and extraordinary opportunity for satellite broadcasters,” ST said. MaxLinear is providing the combined system’s front end, ST the back end, they said. The STiH412 system-on-a-chip device from ST handles the decoding and video processing in the design. In addition to HEVC decoding, the SoC provides multichannel recording to an internal or external hard drive, as well as VOD capability and real-time transcoding of up to three streams, they said.

Eutelsat is partnering with Asian satellite provider ST Teleport to deliver a 4K TV channel on the Eutelsat 70B satellite that reaches Southeast Asia and Australia, the companies said Friday. Content for the 4K feed is encoded in High Efficiency Video Coding (HEVC) by Ateme and Thomson Video Networks at 50 frames per second with 10-bit color depth, the companies said. They will display the feed at the Eutelsat stand at CommunicAsia 2014, which begins Tuesday in Singapore, using a Samsung 65-inch UE65HU7500 TV, they said. The channel also can be received by 4K TVs equipped with DVB-S2 demodulators and HEVC decoders, they said. Content to be shown will include documentaries and cultural and sports programming, they said.

U.S. policy goals for promoting a competitive global market for satellite communications services are being met in accordance with the Open-Market Reorganization for the Betterment of International Telecommunications (ORBIT) Act, the FCC said in its 15th ORBIT Act report to Congress released Wednesday. Intelsat said it faces numerous and legitimate competitors, “including fiber optic cable, broadband-enabled IP applications, and terrestrial wireless platforms,” the report said (http://bit.ly/1pHWSVz). Intelsat said it faces robust competition “which proves that it does not enjoy any market advantages resulting from its days as an intergovernmental organization,” the report said. Inmarsat invests in new technologies, including its deployment of its fourth-generation network, it said. The company said it continues to introduce new services, the report said. The commission is required to provide annual reports on the impact of the privatization of Inmarsat and Intelsat. Commissioner Ajit Pai reiterated in a statement his support of the FCC Consolidated Reporting Act, HR-2844, as a step toward repealing outdated reporting requirements like the ORBIT Act report (http://bit.ly/1u8iEBZ). The bill would more closely align the FCC’s responsibilities with today’s marketplace, he said. It would give Congress and the public a “one-stop shop for (more) relevant and comprehensive data, facilitating better oversight and more informed policymaking,” he said.