Press Releases

Telesat’s advanced LEO system is designed to deliver fiber-quality connectivity to aircraft, maritime vessels and other commercial and government users globally

Ottawa, Canada, May 15, 2018 – Telesat, a leading global satellite operator, and Global Eagle Entertainment Inc. (Nasdaq:ENT), a provider of satellite-based connectivity services to global mobility markets, have agreed to collaborate in optimizing the capabilities of Telesat’s LEO system to serve growing broadband requirements of maritime and aeronautical markets. The collaboration will include user terminal development, service-offering design, marketing, in-flight testing and at-sea performance testing.

Global Eagle is an industry leader in satellite broadband and connected entertainment services for aviation, maritime, enterprise and government markets. The company is a leader in provision of satellite connectivity for single-aisle airliners worldwide, broadcasting live television services to airliners and cruise ships, and providing content services to aviation.

This collaboration follows Global Eagle’s comprehensive review of planned non-geostationary-orbit (NGSO) constellations. The review resulted in Global Eagle concluding that Telesat’s innovative LEO system design can provide low latency, high throughput and global coverage – including polar and oceanic regions – to optimally deliver a consistent, responsive and scalable guest experience for airlines and cruise lines.

Telesat and Global Eagle will work together on design and testing activities for Telesat’s planned LEO constellation using Telesat’s recently launched Phase 1 LEO satellite. The parties will focus on airline and large cruise ship applications in polar and high-latitude regions, and passenger use-cases globally that leverage sub-50 millisecond latency for data-intensive applications. For aviation, Global Eagle will be testing its newly developed Ka-band antenna.

“Global Eagle uses Telesat geostationary satellites today to deliver high-performing wireless broadband to millions of airline and cruise passengers,” said Josh Marks, CEO of Global Eagle. “We believe advanced LEO systems like Telesat’s can offer important advantages for aviation and cruise markets, including consistent global coverage, very low latency, and gigabit connections. Telesat’s open architecture can provide Global Eagle’s customers with an easy upgrade path to add LEO capacity to existing GEO systems, avoiding technological or economic lock-in to legacy technologies. We can also bring new technologies to our customers more quickly building on our open architecture. Global Eagle is very excited about this collaboration and eager to begin testing on Telesat’s Phase 1 LEO satellite.”

“Mobility has long been a key sector for Telesat and we are very pleased that Global Eagle, a recognized leader in mobile broadband, has decided to collaborate on serving aviation and cruise markets beginning with live testing on Telesat’s Phase 1 LEO satellite,” said Dan Goldberg, President and CEO of Telesat. “Telesat’s LEO system is designed to deliver low latency, high speed broadband with the ability to instantly allocate bandwidth where it’s most needed – a key benefit for mobility customers. Our collaboration with Global Eagle is further confirmation that the innovative design of Telesat’s LEO system offers many advantages to aeronautical and maritime markets. We look forward to benefiting from Global Eagle’s expertise as Telesat works to optimize the service offerings and network capabilities of our LEO system.”

About Telesat (www.telesat.com)

Telesat is a leading global satellite operator, providing reliable and secure satellite-delivered communications solutions worldwide to broadcast, telecom, corporate and government customers. Headquartered in Ottawa, Canada, the company’s state-of-the-art fleet consists of 15 GEO satellites, the Canadian payload on ViaSat-1 and one Phase 1 LEO satellite which is the start of Telesat’s planned global LEO satellite constellation that will offer low latency, high throughput broadband services. An additional two GEO satellites are under construction with launches planned for mid-2018. Telesat is also a leading technical consultant providing high value expertise and support to satellite operators, insurers and other industry participants on a global basis. Privately held, Telesat’s principal shareholders are Canada’s Public Sector Pension Investment Board and Loral Space & Communications Inc. (NASDAQ: LORL).

Forward-Looking Statements Safe Harbor

This news release contains statements that are not based on historical fact and are ‘‘forward-looking statements’’ within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. When used in this news release, the words “will”, “look forward to”, “collaborate”, “planned”, “optimize”, “growing” and “designed to”, or other variations of these words or other similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements and information. Actual results may differ materially from the expectations expressed or implied in the forward-looking statements as a result of known and unknown risks and uncertainties. Detailed information about some of the known risks and uncertainties is included in the “Risk Factors” section of Telesat Canada’s Annual Report on Form 20-F for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2017 which can be obtained on the SEC website at http://www.sec.gov. Known risks and uncertainties include but are not limited to: risks associated with operating satellites and providing satellite services, including satellite construction or launch delays, launch failures, in-orbit failures or impaired satellite performance, the ability to successfully deploy an advanced global LEO satellite constellation, volatility in exchange rates and risks associated with domestic and foreign government regulation. The foregoing list of important factors is not exhaustive. The information contained in this news release reflects Telesat’s beliefs, assumptions, intentions, plans and expectations as of the date of this news release. Except as required by law, Telesat disclaims any obligation or undertaking to update or revise the information herein.

Media Contact:

Gerry Nagler
Telesat
+1 908 470-4907
gnagler@telesat.com