spacetoday.net: Astrium/ISRO venture wins broadband satellite contract

Posted: Tue, May 16, 2006, 6:50 AM ET (1050 GMT)
HYLAS satellite illustration (EADS/Astrium)

A joint venture between EADS Astrium and the Indian space agency ISRO has won a contract for a broadband communications satellite. British company Avanti Screenmedia Group signed a contract for the Highly Adaptable Satellite (HYLAS), a spacecraft that will provide HDTV and broadband Internet services primarily for rural residents of western and central Europe. ESA will pay about a quarter of the €120-million (US$155-million) cost for the project. The satellite bus will be built by ISRO, with Astrium providing the communications payload and antenna. The 2,300-kilogram is scheduled for launch in 2008, and will operate from 33.5 degrees west longitude in GEO. The contract is the second for the Astrium/ISRO satellite joint venture.