News Broadcasting
Intelsat to provide satellite internet connectivity to Belgacom
LONDON: Intelsat signed a new multi-transponder agreement with Belgacom, on 25 November 2003. One of the leading Belgian telecom operator, Belgacom moved to Intelsat’s global satellite network, to provide high-speed Internet access to ISPs in Europe, the Middle East, Africa and Asia.
Belgacom’s C- and Ku-band service use six 72-MHz units of Intelsat capacity. According to a company release the band service is already operational and is designed to provide a high-quality and reliable way for ISPs operating in terrestrially underserved areas of these regions to access the Internet.
With help of the Intelsat service, Belgacom plans to expand its reach and strengthen penetration of the Eastern European and Middle Eastern markets. It utilises a 32 meter C-band antenna from Lessive teleport, in combination with Intelsat space segment.
According to Intelsat’s data, carrier & internet unit regional vice president, Europe sales, Yuli Wexler, “We won this contract because Intelsat’s capacity and flexible solutions can be tailored to fit the exact requirements of our customers. The ability of Intelsat to move, change or adjust our network, as needed, is a significant advantage in a market where other providers don’t necessarily have the freedom to adjust their networks to accommodate service requests.”
News Broadcasting
News TV viewership jumps 33 per cent as West Asia war draws audiences
BARC Week 8 data shows news share rising to 8 per cent despite T20 World Cup
NEW DELHI:Â Even as individual television news channel ratings remain under a temporary pause, the genre itself is seeing a clear surge in audience attention.
According to the latest data from Broadcast Audience Research Council India, television news recorded a 33 per cent jump in genre share in Week 8 of 2026, covering February 28 to March 6.
The news genre accounted for 8 per cent of total television viewership during the week, up from 6 per cent the previous week. The spike in attention coincided with escalating geopolitical tensions involving the United States, Israel and Iran, which have kept global headlines firmly fixed on West Asia.
The rise is notable because it came at a time when cricket was dominating television screens. The high-stakes stages of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup, including the Super 8 fixtures and semi-finals, were being broadcast during the same period.
Despite the cricket frenzy, viewers appeared to be toggling between sport and global affairs, boosting the overall share of news programming.
The surge in genre share comes even as the government has enforced a one-month pause on publishing ratings for individual news channels. The move followed regulatory scrutiny of the television ratings ecosystem.
While channel-level rankings remain temporarily out of sight, the genre-level data suggests that when global tensions escalate, audiences continue to turn to television news for real-time updates.
