Intelsat Ltd., which describes itself as "the world's leading provider of commercial satellite services," said in a statement Dec. 21 that on that day "the Horizons 2 satellite was successfully launched aboard Arianespace's Ariane 5 rocket. The satellite is owned by a joint venture between Intelsat and JSAT International, was built by Orbital Sciences Corp., will operate from 74 degrees W and will carry a payload of 20 Ku-band transponders."

"Horizons 2 will provide occasional use video and IP-based content distribution for the continental United States, the Caribbean and parts of Canada. Through a specialized capability, the satellite will support a number of comms-on-the-move applications for government customers. Its unique boomerang beam will support littoral water operations off the U.S. eastern seaboard for homeland security, ship-to-shore communications and cargo tracking," Intelsat said.

"The successful launch of Horizons 2 now takes our business relationship to a new level," said JSAT CEO Kiyoshi Isozaki. "JSAT and Intelsat's goal is to provide customers with the best combined satellite distribution solutions available to satisfy the growing demand for media and network content distribution services in the competitive North American region."

"Horizons 2 is a testament to Intelsat's drive for creative partnerships that fuel business growth and industry innovation," said Intelsat CEO David McGlade. "We are pleased with the outcome of today's launch and look forward to a successful venture with JSAT."

Intelsat said Horizons 2 was "slated to enter service in the first quarter of 2008."