M7 Group, a Luxembourg pay-TV provider, will use capacity on Eutelsat 9A to start a new pay-TV platform in Hungary. M7 and Eutelsat signed a long-term contract for two 33 MHz transponders on the satellite to broadcast the new platform, Eutelsat said in a Thursday news release (http://bit.ly/1h1JGEp). The platform is composed of 55 of the most popular Hungarian channels and 12 HD channels, and it’s available for direct-to-home reception via Eutelsat 9A, Eutelsat said.

SES requested a 60-day extension of an existing special temporary authority to begin using a new 6.3-meter antenna with the NSS-9 and IS-18 satellites. The FCC previously granted SES an STA for a similar purpose, the company said in its application to the International Bureau (http://bit.ly/1fKB2Jt). SES seeks the extension pending the grant of regular earth station authority, it said.

The 1695-1710 MHz band should be auctioned as a single, unpaired 15 MHz band, Dish Network said in an ex parte filing in docket 13-185 (http://bit.ly/1dq0QdL). There’s no need to adopt the proposed 20 dBm effective isotropic radiated power (EIRP), “which will increase device and deployment costs,” it said. “Technical solutions can adequately safeguard the protection zones without device power limit.” The licensee of this spectrum should have the option of paying for the relocation of the affected government sites in the top 100 markets, instead of coordinating with NTIA, it said. For the lower J block, the licensee’s uplink/downlink designation “should be tied to Dish’s election of the lower AWS-4 band.” Dish’s AWS-4 band consists of 2000-2020 MHz. Whether Dish elects downlink or uplink operations for AWS-4 by June 20, 2016, the J block also should be designated as such, it said. The bands 1755-1780 MHz and 2155-2180 MHz should be paired at auction, Dish said. Dish proposed a standard out-of-band emission limit of -13 dBm per MHz and Third Generation Partnership Project device power level of 25 dBm EIRP for uplink. Dish presented its proposals during phone calls last week with FCC staff from Chairman Tom Wheeler’s office, the Wireless Bureau and Commissioner Mignon Clyburn’s office, it said.

Airbus Defence and Space mobilized five of its satellites to help the search for Malaysia Airlines Flight 370, which disappeared March 8. Satellites, including Pleiades 1A and Spot 5, are taking images of the search zone, Airbus said in a press release (http://bit.ly/1cRNThY). All the data collected is analyzed by the company’s maritime experts and provided to the Malyasian Remote Sensing Agency, it said. Its radar satellite TerraSAR-X can identify layers of hydrocarbon as well as oil slicks or metallic objects floating in the sea, it said.

Since Intelsat and Inmarsat were privatized, consumers have benefited from robust services and the satellite market is competitive, the companies said in comments to the FCC on The Open-Market Reorganization for the Betterment of International Telecommunications (ORBIT) Act report. Inmarsat’s forthcoming Ka-band network, Global Xpress, is the result of a $1.2 billion investment into three Ka-band satellites, Inmarsat said (http://bit.ly/1iG8rIr). Inmarsat has partnered with several satellite industry companies, like iDirect and Cobham/SeaTel, to help deploy Global Xpress, it said: “Inmarsat’s land portfolio has and will continue to grow in the low data rate services.” Intelsat continues to invest heavily “to keep its satellite fleet technologically current,” the satellite operator said in comments (http://bit.ly/1dW1rY8). It has nine satellites in the design or build stages, including several next-generation high-throughput Intelsat Epic satellites, it said. The goals of the ORBIT Act have been fully achieved and the reporting requirement “now is an unnecessary burden on limited commission resources,” it said. The comments will be reflected in the FCC’s annual report to Congress (CD Feb 13 p17).

Airbus Defense and Space expanded an existing agreement with Inmarsat to cover the enterprise and defense markets. The companies are adding new markets and services to a strategic Global Xpress distribution partnership agreement, Airbus Defense and Space said in a news release Wednesday. The agreement also “extends the delivery of the future Ka-band service to Airbus Defense and Space’s worldwide distribution channels and customer base,” it said. Airbus plans to offer Global Xpress to its larger partner and customer base across a range of markets, it said. The new government sector agreement “sets out leasing capacity on military Ka-band spot beams,” it said.

The growing threat and sophistication of cyberthreats underscores the need for more security efforts to protect satellite networks, said Intelsat executives. Cyberthreats are state of the art, the environment is dynamic and the threat level has evolved a lot, said Chief Technology Officer Thierry Guillemin. The attacks have become more complex, more pervasive and better funded, he said Monday night at the Satellite 2014 conference in Washington. “You get to a point where you have to have a team of people to keep aware of what’s been happening.” It’s important for operators to engage in network security, he said. Satellite networks are different from terrestrial networks in terms of protection and vulnerability, he said. Satellite systems can be susceptible to jamming, Guillemin said. “A satellite operator sells more end-to-end services and operates hybrid networks.” When operating in the space and terrestrial arenas, satellite systems can be vulnerable to terrestrial threats, too, he said. The consumer wants information immediately, “which adds complications from a security standpoint,” Guillemin said. It’s important to know the posture of partners working with the satellite operator, said Vinit Duggal, Intelsat chief information security officer. To ensure integrity of the network, customers must use encryption, and having visibility mechanisms on the network is important, he said. Communication and operations management are key to ensuring protection, he said. This involves customers, partners and vendors, he said. Intelsat engages in compliance and validation by testing networks internally and also by obtaining third-party assessment, Duggal said. He urged companies to be aware of threats that could evolve with IPv6. IPv6 “expands the canvas” for attackers to operate, and the mobile space adds to that, he said.

LightSquared and ViaSat signed a multiyear agreement to introduce ViaSat L-band Managed Service. The mobile satellite service will combine LightSquared’s SkyTerra 1 satellite with ViaSat’s all-IP, packet-switched satellite technology, LightSquared said in a news release (http://bit.ly/1fk5UVF). The new service allows development of applications “serving the communications needs of consumer, enterprise and government segments,” LightSquared said Monday. The ecosystem will initially include machine-to-machine, vehicular and aviation devices designed to support a range of applications, including communications for emergency first responders and mobile workforce management, it said.

MTN signed an agreement with NewSat to enhance satellite coverage and throughput for MTN customers in Southeast Asia and Oceania. The agreement expands C- and Ku-band satellite coverage in those regions “and puts MTN in a strategic position for future service launches, including Ka band,” MTN said in a news release (http://bit.ly/1ch4xYb). The maritime markets served by MTN’s network are growing in vessel count and in demand, it said. MTN plans to add efficiencies to its network, it said.

Orbcomm unveiled new satellite modems it says are ideal for original equipment manufacturer integration into satellite machine-to-machine applications targeting markets such as transportation and distribution. The modems are 100 percent backward compatible with Orbcomm’s current OG1 satellite network, it said in a news release (http://bit.ly/NV3MbO).