September 2, 2020 – Eutelsat Communications and Sky Italia have reached a strategic agreement for the renewal of Sky’s capacity contract at Eutelsat’s HOTBIRD position. The agreement represents the latest step in the long-standing partnership between Sky, the pre-eminent anchor customer on HOTBIRD, and Eutelsat which has supported since 2003 the development of Sky, the market leader in Italy, in broadcasting its premium content to some five million households. The multi-year contract represents a secured backlog of circa 450 million euros and guarantees broadly stable annual revenues for Eutelsat in the medium term. The contract also includes future extension options representing additional potential revenues. The HOTBIRD fleet forms one of the largest broadcasting systems over Europe. It will be upgraded with the entry into service of two HOTBIRD new generation satellites, to be launched in 2021, that will replace the current spacecraft at Eutelsat’s premium 13 degrees East broadcasting position. The new satellites will deliver improved performances over the European footprint reinforced by a powerful European super-beam.