case study

Rádio e Televisão de Portugal (RTP)
case study
Portuguese Television
Programming goes
Global with Intelsat
The Challenge
Rádio e Televisão de Portugal (RTP) is Portugal’s public
service broadcaster, providing convenient access to
Portuguese-language programming to viewers in Portugal
and around the globe.
Intelsat’s Galaxy 19 satellite is the top free-to-air DTH
platform for international programming delivered to
audiences in North America. The satellite has excellent
coverage over the United States mainland, Hawaii,
Canada, and Central America, and is highly penetrated among international populations in the United
States.
Television channel RTP Internacional was developed to
serve the global audience
of approximately 200
million Portuguese speakers
RTP chose the Galaxy 19
across five continents.
satellite to distribute our content
RTP provides programming suited specifically for
to North America because of
native viewers, as well as
the satellite’s great coverage
customized content for those
and
performance, and to benefit
watching internationally.
“
The channel debuted in
1992, initially reaching
audiences in Europe, and
has since expanded around
the world.
The challenge was to provide this large, geographically diverse audience with
seamless and cost-effective
access to RTP’s compelling
programming.
from its excellent track record
for distribution of international
programming to multiple ethnic
groups in the USA. Thanks to
Galaxy 19, the RTP Internacional
channel is accessible to the large
Portuguese-speaking population
in the USA and Canada.”
North America is home to the
largest Portuguese-speaking
population outside of Portugal
and Brazil, with 1.5 million
people of Portuguese ancestry
living in the United States and
400,000 residing in Canada.
Intelsat’s Galaxy 19 satellite,
with its popular free-to-air DTH
platform, makes Portuguese
programming easily accessible to these nearly 2 million
Portuguese speakers residing
in North America.
Viewers in North America
can access this content on the
Galaxy 19 satellite either by
installing an antenna on their
Jaime Fernandes, Director of
rooftop (as millions of people
International Programming (channel RTPi)
representing more than 40
ethnicities in the United States
The Solution
do), or by accessing the
Intelsat’s global fleet allows RTP to efficiently reach
programming through their cable provider.
the largest Portuguese-speaking minorities throughout
Indeed, the Galaxy 19 international programming platthe world, distributing its native-language content in
form
has been growing strongly over the past several
Latin America via Intelsat 805, in Africa using Intelsat
years,
as more channel providers increasingly want to
907 and in North America on Galaxy 19. The RTP
reach
the
large and varied ethnic populations living
International channel brings linear, “always-on” (24/7)
throughout
the United States and Canada.
Portuguese content to its international audience thanks
RTP achieved its mission of linking its worldwide
to this global solution, provided by Intelsat.
Portuguese-speaking community through its use of
Intelsat’s partners uplink the RTP International channel to
Intelsat’s global fleet. Using three of Intelsat’s satellites,
Intelsat’s satellites: RRSat to Galaxy 19, and Portugal
Galaxy 19, Intelsat 805 and Intelsat 907, RTP has exTelecom to Intelsat 907 and Intelsat 805. Throughout
perienced first-hand the efficient growth path provided
North America, Latin America and Africa, the content
by the global Intelsat platform and its popular regional
is then re-distributed through local distributors, cable
neighborhoods.
systems or DTH platforms.
At a Glance
Intelsat – World’s leading
provider of fixed satellite
services

Rádio e Televisão de Portugal
(RTP) – Portugal’s public
broadcaster

RTP Internacional – Television
channel developed to serve
the global audience of
Portuguese speakers across
five continents

Mission
The challenge was to provide
the large, geographically
diverse international Portuguese
audience with seamless and
cost-effective access to RTP
Internacional’s compelling
programming.
Three Intelsat satellites effectively
allowed RTP to reach out to the
largest Portuguese-speaking
minorities throughout the world,
distributing its native language
content on Galaxy 19 for North
America, Intelsat 805 for Latin
America, and Intelsat 907
for Africa.
Intelsat Distribution Overview
About Rádio e Televisão de Portugal
Founded in 1992, RTP Internacional was the first
worldwide TV satellite channel in Portuguese.
The importance of Portuguese language in the
world context was decisive for the launching of
this project. RTP has a satellite-based network
which allows its reception anywhere in the
world, hence its retransmission to several different digital multi-device platforms through satellite.
By making itself global, RTPi soon became an
affective bond for a linguistic territory of 200
million Portuguese speakers, spread around over
the five continents.
www.rtp.pt/rtpi
About Intelsat
Solution at a Glance
•Galaxy 19: DTH Distribution in North America in Ku-band
•Intelsat 805: Distribution across Americas in C-band
•Intelsat 907: Distribution across Africa in C-band
•24/7 Portuguese content to international audience
•A simple single solution for global reach
Intelsat S.A. is the world’s leading provider of
satellite services, delivering high performance
connectivity solutions for media, fixed and
mobile broadband infrastructure, enterprise and
government and military applications.
Intelsat’s satellite, teleport and fiber infrastructure
is unmatched in the industry, setting the standard
for transmissions of video and broadband
services. Envision… Connect… Transform…
with Intelsat, celebrating 50 years of space
leadership in 2014.
www.intelsat.com
Sales Contacts
Africa
+27 11-535-4700
sales.africa@intelsat.com
Asia-Pacific
+65 6572-5450
sales.asiapacific@intelsat.com
Europe & Middle East
+44 20-3036-6700
sales.eme@intelsat.com
Latin America & Caribbean
+1 305-445-5536
sales.lac@intelsat.com
North America
+1 202-944-7546
sales.na@intelsat.com
www.intelsat.com
14/03/6473-RTP