Orbital Sciences Corporation (NYSE: ORB) today reported its financial results for the first quarter of 2012. First quarter 2012 revenues were $338.0 million, up 6% compared to $317.7 million in the first quarter of 2011. First quarter 2012 operating income was $23.8 million, an increase of 136% compared to $10.1 million in the first quarter of 2011.

The theme of this year’s NAB to be held this month in Las Vegas is “the great content shift.”   If you haven’t attended the NAB in the last five years, you’ll hardly recognize it now.   The focus is still on traditional broadcasting, but it has since incorporated the many changes in how content is  created, managed and distributed in the new multiplatform environment. The NAB now covers Over-the-Top (OTT), IPTV and other new and emerging technologies.  

The global space economy grew to US$ 289.77 billion in 2011, reflecting a surprisingly robust single-year expansion of 12.2 percent and five-year growth of 41 percent in a global economy that has been suppressed in many other sectors, according to the Space Report 2012 published by the Space Foundation.

The Satellite TV  industry is in the midst of a revolution according to a report by IBISWorld. Satellite TV providers  supply popular family shows, news, movies, sports, documentaries and other products to a growing swarm of eager subscribers willing to pay for in-home entertainment. For example, the introduction of high-definition (HD) TV vastly improved the quality of shows and attracted subscribers even as disposable income dropped during the Great Recession.

VT Systems and the Utilities Telecom Council (UTC) released the results of a new study on satellite communications in the utility industry. The study, Strategic Assessment of Satellite Usage in the Utility Industry, was conducted to gain a better understanding of how satellite communications is currently used in the utility industry and to better articulate the benefits of modern VSAT systems. Among the key findings were that 60% of utilities surveyed are already using some form of satellite communications technology.

The city of Rio de Janeiro will once again be the location for the latest in the GVF-EMP Oil & Gas Communications Conference series as it launches into its 2012 global program.  Held in association with Harris CapRock, Intelsat, RigNet, Hughes, Telespazio, KVH, C-COM Satellite Systems, and with special thanks to Petrobras, ‘Oil & Gas Communications Brazil 2012: 21st Century Digital Oilfield & Gasfield Imperatives Onshore, Offshore, and in Deepwater’ will take place 25th & 26th April 2012 at the Windsor Barra Hotel.

ITU’s upcoming ITU Telecom World 2012 event will take place in Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE) from 14-18 October 2012. The event, which follows the format pioneered at World 2011, will see interactive debate, networking and knowledge-sharing placed firmly at the center of an influential discussion agenda.

by Virgil Labrador, Editor-in-Chief

The satellite industry will continues to grow in the coming years albeit at a more modest pace.  This was the consensus  among senior satellite industry executives speaking at the Satellite 2012 Conference and Exhibition in Washington, D.C. and Cabsat/Satellite MENA 2012 in Dubai, UAE held last month.  There are some concerns with the developing economic crisis in Europe, where three of the four major satellite operators are based, but the mood is decidedly bullish.

NSR’s Oil and Gas via Satellite, 2nd Edition report. released today, finds the Oil & Gas satcom market to remain lucrative over the long-term as bandwidth needs rise worldwide and emerging Oil & Gas markets increase their requirements. Traditional Oil & Gas markets such as the North Sea and Gulf of Mexico are now increasingly complemented by growing satcom demand in Asia, Latin America and the Indian & Pacific Oceans.

BroadcastAsia2012 International Conferencereturns with an impressive line-up of over 80 reputed industry speakers to deliberate on the most critical issues facing broadcasters today. Running from 19 to 22 June 2012 at the Suntec Convention Centre, the conference agenda foretells the ‘reinvention’ of the broadcast industry as content is re-purposed towards viewers who have become increasingly more mobile and who view content on various devices. Broadcasters are forced to reckon with this fact and gear up to cater to this growing trend.