Intelsat, Ltd.'s Vice President for the Asia-Pacific region, David Ball, shared the Company's expertise on ensuring telecommunications connectivity among the nations of the Pacific and addressed attendees of the “Ensuring Pacific Connectivity” meeting at United Nations Headquarters this afternoon.

At this forum, Ball outlined the existing opportunities for the private sector to help this region address challenges such as low infrastructure capacity, scattered islands, small economies, and restrictive regulatory arrangements. He also noted the underlying benefits in terms of jobs and community services that result from improving telecommunications infrastructure. With the adoption of data and video services rapidly accelerating in the Pacific, Ball stressed that communication infrastructure in this region requires flexibility, dependability and reach for the dissemination of bandwidth-rich content. Satellite technology, he pointed out, will play a particularly active role in ensuring robust coverage in the Pacific Islands.

Last month, Intelsat announced Office des Postes et Telecommunications of French Polynesia (OPT) signed a multi-transponder contract for capacity on Intelsat’s new satellite, IS-18. The contract, which spans the 15-year expected life of the satellite, expands the services currently provided to OPT on Intelsat’s IS-701 satellite.

“Fixed satellite services have historically provided, and will continue to provide, a reliable communications infrastructure for the Pacific region. Intelsat’s proven business model and ubiquitous coverage serves even the most geographically dispersed regions, regardless of the density requirements of other technologies,” Ball continued. “Most importantly, our continued investment in our global network—over $500 Million in 2007 alone—means that telecommunications connectivity services within and between the nations of the Pacific will continue to be available for years to come.”