ASTRA and NEO agreement paves the way for interactive broadband satellite services in Spain

Abrared, owner of NEO, provider of interactive broadband solutions in Spain and SES Multimedia, the wholly owned SES ASTRA business unit, have signed a contract for two-way satellite capacity and ASTRA’s Broadband Interactive (BBI) service solutions.

This exciting new service will enable businesses, enterprises and institutions right across Spain to use leading-edge two-way satellite technology to improve the speed and reach of their broadband communications. As well as enhancing corporate communications in the country, the launch of the service confirms Spain as a leading advocate of the DVB/RCS-based commercial Ka-Band satellite communications in Europe.

The service, which will start to be rolled out early in 2002, will significantly enhance the range and type of Internet-based applications available to companies, public institutions and schools. By using capacity on the ASTRA satellites, corporate users for example will enjoy Internet surfing and content downloads at DSL-type and higher speeds.

In addition, the two-way interactive capabilities of ASTRA’s BBI system will enable companies to contribute information via satellite to the network at speeds of up to 2 Mbit/s from their own premises. This provides an easy and efficient method of connecting users throughout an organisation, irrespective of their location, in Spain or even within the European coverage area of the ASTRA satellites.

Today NEO is a wireless local loop operator in Spain. Enrique Jalle, Managing Director says: " We are very pleased to have concluded this agreement, as it enables us to extend our current product portfolio. Complementary to our existing services, ASTRA’s broadband interactive service will enable us to provide attractive and cost-effective end-to-end network solutions for new and existing customers. There is no doubt this high performance and operationally outstanding service will be in high demand. During the coming years we anticipate hundreds of organizations being equipped at single and multiple sites for the service."

Robert Feierbach, Business Director of SES Multimedia commented: "This agreement with Abrared is a very important step for the dynamic Spanish broadband and interactive market. We are excited and confident that NEO will successfully roll-out this new service. Interactive broadband satellite users in Spain will benefit from three unique BBI features: ASTRA’s pan-European coverage, instant broadband last mile connectivity and very high quality of service."

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About ASTRA BBI:

SES has launched the ASTRA Broadband Interactive System (BBI), the satellite-based two-way broadband service using the Ka-band frequency (29.5-30.0 GHz) transponders on its ASTRA 1H satellite. BBI provides broadband interactive connectivity via satellite for corporate users initially in Europe, and in other regions of the world at a later stage.

ASTRA BBI offers transmission and data delivery speeds of up to 38 Mbit/s. The DVB/RCS (Digital Video Broadcasting-Return Channel over Satellite) standard return channel uses the Ka-band frequency range and allows for upload speeds of between 384 kbit/s using a 70-95 cm dish and 2 Mbit/s using a 95-135 cm dish.

For more information, please also visit: www.ses-astra.com.

ASTRA BBI is a service of SES ASTRA, an SES GLOBAL company (Luxembourg Stock Exchange: SESG; Frankfurt Stock Exchange: SDSL). For further information visit: www.ses-global.com.

About NEO

Neo is an operator providing broadband telecommunication services, having IBERDROLA as its main shareholder, and using last generation wireless technology (LMDS) which allows it to overcome one of today's biggest inconveniences: the low quality and network access capacity. Neo's technology provides solutions to the needs of any kind of enterprises and business requiring voice services, high speed data link services (dedicated lines, Frame Relay, IP-VPN), Internet connection with guaranteed supply and multiple services of an added value such as: videoconference, Internet access services for hotels, TV remote surveillance, hosting, etc. LMDS technology allows Neo to offer services up to 4 Mbps, which are complemented with other alternative support technologies such as its radio network in 38 GHz band frequency and especially the optical fibre of IBERDROLA its main partner, that allow to commercialize speeds up to 34, 155, 622Mbps, 2.5Gbps and 10 Gbps.

Currently, Neo is present in the main cities of the country, providing extremely high quality services and assuring a customized commitment of quality. All these services led this company to become the prime LMDS operator which obtained ISO 9001:2000 Certification of Quality.

For further information about Neo visit www.neo.es.