Norbert Hölzle, Global Head of Media at SES, talks about the impact of enhancing broadcast via satellite on the daily lives of viewers.
Having been part of the satellite and media industry for many years, I often think about our purpose and the role we play. I have seen up close how driven our customers and partners are when it comes to delivering the best TV content and offering unforgettable viewing experiences to their viewers, always striving to do more.
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And you could ask, why? What is driving them? Does this industry have a real purpose that’s impacting people’s lives? After all, it’s just TV, isn’t it?
Well, not quite. TV is more than just content, it’s more than information and entertainment. It can help communities feel connected to one another and to the rest of the world. It can help a bar owner create a community, a chef nourish a nation, or a hotelier create a home away from home. And these are the stories that I’d like to share.
Brazilian sports fans share cheers and tears
For Walter Flavius, picture quality is as important as the food served at Posto 6, his sports bar in Brazil’s Sao Paulo. Brazilians are as passionate about football as feijoada, their national dish, and getting either wrong is not an option.
Football is a uniting force, Walter told us: “We get together, meet new friends and people from different countries. They share emotions. When they win, they’re happy. If they lose, they cry together.”
On match night, Posto 6 plays the big game on a giant outdoor screen, and the atmosphere in the street is electric. Our collaboration with local satellite distributor Casablanca Online delivers the action live and in HD, two non-negotiables for Walter.
Nowadays, people expect 4K and want to feel like they’re in the game. If you don’t have good quality, they go somewhere else.
There is little chance of that, thanks to the work of media companies and their satellite providers, whose work helps this small business owner create nights out to remember.
Nourishing a nation with Chef Yohanis
Chef Yohanis’s mission is to educate Ethiopians on how to cook delicious and nutritious meals on a budget. His Culinary and Lifestyle TV show shares advice that reaches the country’s vast rural areas as well as towns.
The show is possible due to the creation of Ethiosat, a free-to-air satellite platform created in partnership with SES. Prior to its launch, local broadcasters were limited by prohibitive broadcasting costs and, as a result, schedules were largely made up of programmes from other Middle Eastern and African regions.
“We're grateful that satellite allows us to create this kind of content that reaches our population in areas where we don't expect TV to be available for everyone,” he said.
Making a home-from-home for international guests
The best hoteliers see their work as a vocation to deliver the best possible guest experience. For Marc Petrelluzzi, the owner and Manager of Le Petit Hotel on the Caribbean Island of St. Martin, this means attention to every detail.
For his primarily American guests, this means the perfect sea view, luxurious linens and the chance to relax with their favourite TV shows. And they are pleasantly surprised with all the channels they want in HD quality.
Petrelluzzi, an experienced hotelier, switched from the island’s error-prone cable service to satellite television provided by Kiwisat using SES satellite capacity. Not only does it provide a wide choice of channels but resilience in the event of the many hurricanes that impact the region.
It is one of the many details that turn his life’s passion into five-star reviews.
These success stories from people like Walter, Yohanis and Marc have become the force that drives me personally. They show how broadcasters, platforms and satellite providers play a pivotal role in helping game-changing individuals fulfil not only their personal and professional goals, but also showcase the magnitude of their purpose.
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