Although the overall mood at the Satellite Business Week conference in Paris organized by Euroconsult was not as ebullient as it has been in the last couple of years it was none the less generally positive.

Collectively, US Pay TV providers lost 400,000 subscribers in the second quarter—their single worst period in over three years. Cable TV took the brunt of the hit, though Satellite operators were not left unscathed. While much of the subscriber loss can be attributed to traditional economic churners—“deal seekers” looking for a cheaper price—the percentage of those who say they’re giving up on Pay TV altogether is not abating, according to recent research from Strategy Analytics.

IDATE has just published its “World Internet Usages & Markets” report. This report provides data and forecasts on Internet services markets – usage and revenue, by country and region – and is structured around the following key services: search engines, social networking, e-commerce, video and online advertising, both fixed and mobile. It covers Europe, North America and Asia, and analyses both the major trends in each segment and the market’s key players.

This is not your  father’s IBC.  Like  most industry shows,  the IBC is evolving and it’s getting harder to distinguish traditionally broadcast-oriented shows like the IBC in Amsterdam and the NAB in Las Vegas with the Consumer Electronic Show (CES) and other shows dealing with content delivery and management. 

While many of the HDTV markets in Western Europe are relatively mature, a trio of surveys from ABI Research suggests Germany still has plenty of room for growth. Of the 1,000 German respondents, only 38% claimed to own at least one HDTV, a penetration rate significantly lower than the data collected in France and the UK. Among these consumers, Samsung captured the highest share at 27%, with Philips following at 22% of respondents.

The latest data from analyst firm Point Topic has revealed the current affordability of broadband around the world highlights a stark contrast in broadband prices which will challenge the industry as it looks to increase global penetration.  “Broadband prices can be over a thousand times higher in real terms in the poorer countries,” said Oliver Johnson, CEO at Point Topic.

Parks Associates released new research today revealing consumers in Western Europe value multidevice access to recorded TV programs over other new video services, including access to live TV.

In NSR’s recently released Global Satellite Manufacturing and Launch Markets (GSMLM) report, a possible GEO Launcher over-supply, and thus the return to strong competition, was mentioned as a possibility in the launch market. However, recent developments from ILS/Krunichev and SpaceX may end up limiting the supply and the corresponding competition.

It’s easy to forget that the four largest satellite commercial operators all started out with government support. Intelsat, Inmarsat and Eutelsat were inter-governmental organisations for the first 25 years of their existence and SES started out with backing from Luxemburg’s government and government-owned banks. Governments continue to play an important role in getting new commercial satellite operators off the ground in emerging markets.

The enterprise customer is the most attractive yet elusive for the satellite service provider