Artist's concept of Telstar 12 in Earth orbit. Photo: Loral

Loral Skynet and EUTELSAT, two of the world's leading satellite operators, Monday signed a far-reaching agreement which clears the way for each of them to pursue business opportunities without risk of mutual interference in the geostationary arc over the Atlantic Ocean between 12.5 degrees West and 15 degrees West.

Under the terms of the agreement Loral will immediately begin commercial operations of its Telstar 12 (previously named Orion 2) satellite at 15 degrees West, where in-orbit testing has now been completed. EUTELSAT will continue to develop services at its ATLANTIC GATE position at 12.5 degrees West and will serve its customers at 14.8 degrees West aboard the Telstar 12 satellite. The agreement will be subject to the granting to EUTELSAT and Loral of uplink licences and the necessary authorizations to operate in the US. These administrative procedures are expected to be completed shortly, enabling the commencement of services to and from the US.

"We are very pleased to have found a solution that is a plus for both parties," said Terry Hart, president of Loral Skynet. "Both EUTELSAT and Loral now have excellent Atlantic orbital positioning, and customers of both companies will not face any uncertainties in their future satellite services. We also very much appreciate the role of the Federal Communication Commission's International Bureau in helping to resolve this issue quickly and amicably."

"I welcome this agreement with Loral for mutual interference-free operations in such a highly competitive part of the geostationary arc," commented EUTELSAT Director General Giuliano Berretta. "EUTELSAT's ATLANTIC GATE at 12.5 degrees West, first opened in February this year, is an instrumental part of our strategy to bridge the Atlantic from North and South America to Europe. It is opening important business opportunities for us in the markets for Internet backbone and broadcasting distribution links, professional intranet and extranet networks and consumer television between America and Europe".

Telstar 12, which was launched in October of this year with 36 high-powered Ku-band transponders, will begin commercial operation at 15 degrees West under a special temporary authority from the FCC, pending issuance of permanent authority. From this slot, Telstar 12 will be able to serve all of Europe, as well as the eastern U.S., South America and South Africa.

Loral Skynet of Bedminster, N.J., a subsidiary of Loral Space & Communications, is a leading satellite communications services provider that operates the Telstar satellite fleet, which provides C-band and Ku-band coverage over the continental United States, Hawaii, Alaska, Puerto Rico, and the Caribbean, as well as Europe, Asia, South America, northern Africa and South Africa. The company leases transponder capacity and also provides technical consulting, as well as tracking, telemetry, and control of satellite fleets for a wide variety of customers.

Loral Skynet is also a member of the Loral Global Alliance, which offers its customers the advantages of a worldwide network of satellite capacity currently on the Telstar fleet and the three-satellite Satmex fleet, as well as on future Europe*Star satellites.

Loral Space & Communications is a high technology company that concentrates primarily on satellite manufacturing and satellite-based services, including broadcast transponder leasing and value-added services, domestic and international corporate data networks, global wireless telephony, broadband data transmission and content services, Internet services, and international direct-to-home satellite services.

EUTELSAT is providing capacity for transatlantic connections in the Ku-band at 12.5 degrees West via its EUTELSAT II-F2 satellite. Its ATLANTIC BIRD(TM) 1 craft, which is due for launch in mid-2001, will add 20 Ku-band transponders to 12.5 degrees West. Coverage will be extended further into Europe and North Africa and full interconnectivity will be established between Europe and South America in addition to Europe and North America.

With its fleet of 15 satellites and six under construction, Paris-based EUTELSAT is Europe's leading satellite operator and ranks as one of the largest globally, with reach across Europe, large parts of Africa, the Middle East and now America. In addition to broadcasting almost 600 analogue and digital TV channels to more than 81 million satellite and cable homes EUTELSAT satellites are used for high-speed Internet connections and Internet backbone traffic, corporate networks, satellite newsgathering, telephony, and for mobile voice, data and positioning services.