ARABSAT and SPI International signed a long term Agreement resulted in Arabsat having the exclusive distribution rights for three new HD channels in HD/SD for MENA region on Arabsat BADR-5 satellite at 26 degrees East “Hot Spot” and African countries on Arabsat-5C satellite at 20 degrrees East “See-digit-All”, more HD channels from SPI portfolio are also under consideration.

Khalid Balkheyour President & CEO, ARABSAT said: “We are very pleased to start a partnership with SPI International; we are committed to provide them with the best satellite services and bring them to ARABSAT neighborhood of more than 170 million viewers over the Middle East and Africa. We pledge our support to help SPI International expand and wish them the very best of luck.”

ARABSAT as one of the top satellite operators in the region, was on the forefront of the HD demand since 2007 when they first allocated a free transponder to encourage regional and non-regional broadcasters to launch their HD channels.

With an ample number of satellites and orbital slots known to millions of viewers in the Middle East region, Africa, and Europe, as well as suitable available bandwidth, full backup capacity, a partnership with an HD ready satellite teleport and high emphasis on channels reception quality earned ARABSAT an excellent reputation among broadcast customers who recommend ARABSAT as the 1st Point Of Delivery for HD and SD channels to content distribution headends such as IPTV and others. Arabsat with this Agreement with SPI is cementing more its strength and leadership in the MEA HD market.

“Following the successful launch of our new HD channels in Europe, Asia and North America we are very happy to partner with ARABSAT and expand our global reach to Middle East and Africa” said Loni Farhi, SPI International President.

—Fightbox HD— is a unique worldwide channel presenting a compilation of the finest combat sports (more than 40 disciplines) from around the globe all on one channel. No matter what the discipline; kickboxing, judo, wrestling, jiu-jitsu, karate and more, Fightbox has something for the fight fan in all of us.

—Fashionbox HD— brings coverage of the world’s top designers and most famous brands with a special emphasis on the trendsetters as well as the cities considered to be the capitals of fashion.

—Docubox— airs documentary films and TV programs devoted to nature, science and human civilization.