PARIS, January 7, 2013 /PRNewswire/ --

As the television and cinema industries accelerate their progression towards Ultra HD (4K), Eutelsat Communications (Euronext Paris: ETL) today announced it is launching a dedicated demonstration Ultra HD channel for Europe on the EUTELSAT 10A satellite. The first transmissions of content filmed in 4K will start on January 8. Delivering a resolution of eight million pixels, four times the resolution of HDTV, Ultra HD (4K) is poised to mark the next big leap forward in the immersive viewing experience.

Eutelsat's new channel is designed to benefit all actors in the broadcasting chain who want to acquire expertise in 4K, including production companies, pay-TV operators, rights owners and TV set manufacturers. The new channel will operate in progressive mode at 50 frames per second. It will be encoded in MPEG-4 and transmitted at 40 Mbit/s in four Quad HD streams. Eutelsat is partnering with ATEME, a video compression solution provider to the broadcast industry, for the transmissions that will be uplinked to the EUTELSAT 10A satellite from its teleport in Rambouillet, near Paris.

The launch of Europe's first dedicated channel comes as key actors prepare to meet in Las Vegas for the annual Consumer Electronics Show, one of the world's leading technology fairs. Ultra HD is expected to be a centrepiece at the show, with new Ultra HD sets showcased by display technology leaders revealing stellar resolution and immersive viewing experience.

"This new step towards 4K continues Eutelsat's longstanding commitment to achieving new broadcast milestones that over the last 20 years have included digital TV, HDTV and 3D," said Jean-François Leprince-Ringuet, Eutelsat's Commercial Director. "Early and close collaboration between all players in the broadcast chain will be a key success factor for this new revolution. We are delighted to propose this first Ultra HD platform forEurope."

For more information: http://www.ateme.com

About Eutelsat Communications

With capacity commercialised on 30 satellites delivering reach of Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Asia, significant parts of the Americas and the Asia-Pacific, Eutelsat Communications (Euronext Paris : ETL, code ISIN: FR0010221234) is one of the world's leading satellite operators. As of 30 September 2012 Eutelsat's satellites were broadcasting more than 4,400 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 750 commercial, technical and operational professionals from 30 countries. http://www.eutelsat.com

SOURCE Eutelsat Communications