[SatNews] Two partners are going to implement the nexgen television and radio exchange network of the Saudi Arabian government’s nationwide media transformation program, which involves deployment of satellite-based technology for a national infrastructure to deliver television, radio and Intranet services.

The TV and Radio Exchange network is a large deployment, providing a state-of-the-art solution for contribution between the studios and broadcast facilities located across the country, and for the exchange of radio and TV content between locations. This major infrastructure deal finds Newtec and local integration specialist First Gulf Network supplying the needed expertise for implementation.

The network’s first stage of deployment will include HD-capable terminals and a central earth station pointed to Arabsat 5A, which successfully launched in June. The initial deployment will use Ku-band satellite bandwidth with the future option of Ka-band when the upcoming extra satellite capability becomes available. Newtec’s participation is with its equipment for this major contract and the company will also contribute to provisioning for the expansion of Saudi Arabia’s capacity for Digital Terrestrial TV (DTT) broadcasting — the extra capacity being used for migration to HD of the current channels, and to accommodate the first private broadcasters now appearing in the Kingdom, are all included in this agreement.

The DTT network will migrate from one single MFN bouquet to different SFN bouquets and will be entirely based on Newtec Horizon technology, with as many as 80 DTT towers being added throughout the Kingdom. In addition, many SFN gap fillers will be added to expand indoor coverage. In-car, portable and indoor reception with a small antenna is critical for the acceptance of DTT in the country. Saudi Arabia’s ambitious multi-year programme, overseen by the Saudi Ministry of Culture and Information (MOCI), will transform national TV and radio media provision for the Kingdom’s young and growing demographic. The program will take in the entire broadcast chain, from digitization of HD terrestrial TV, through expansion of TV and radio contribution/distribution infrastructure, outside broadcasting (OB) and satellite news gathering (SNG) vehicles, studios, production and post-production, to archiving and playout facilities.