The biggest media company in the Republic of Belarus - The National State TV and Radio Company of the Republic of Belarus - has selected Globecast, the global solutions provider for media, to launch the HD variant of its international satellite channel Belarus 24.
TV channel Belarus 24 is building upon its decade-long relationship with Globecast with the launch of the free-to-air channel on Eutelsat’s HOTBIRD. The HD version was made available on December 1, with the SD variant continuing to be carried by Eutelast until January 1st, 2019.
Belarus 24 is a Russian-language channel that offers a mix of political, social and cultural content, selected from the broadcaster’s national output. The launch of the HD variant on HOTBIRD marks the first launch of an HD channel from a CIS (Commonwealth of Independent States) country.
“We have a high trust relationship with Globecast, much like they do with Eutelsat. Given the success and reach of Belarus 24 in SD since 2005, we felt it was time for us to deliver this important content in HD so that we can bring a significantly enhanced viewing experience to our customers. We are very happy with our choice of Globecast and Eutelsat as the project has gone exceptionally smoothly,” said Mr. Aleksandr Martynenko, General Director at Belarus 24.
Globecast is providing a backup/redundant link from Belarus 24 Moscow facility to Globecast’s hub in Paris via its GCXN solution. GCXN provides technical management of the transport of broadcast services over the public Internet. GCXN can be used for primary and secondary distribution with broadcast-grade quality. It comes as a standalone service or as a complementary solution to satellite services.
“Belarus 24 has been an important customer of ours for almost a decade, and we feel privileged that they came to us with this key upgrade in their distribution development. We’ve worked closely with them, both technically and commercially, to bring the HD version of Belarus 24 to millions of viewers across Europe,” said Biliana Pumpalovic, General Director of Globecast Moscow.
