Beximco Digital to use Bangabandhu Satellite-1 to distribute foreign pay TV channels

Bangladesh Satellite Company Limited (BSCL) has signed an agreement with Beximco Digital Distribution Limited (BDDL) under which BDDL will use Bangabandhu Satellite-1 (BS-1) to distribute foreign clean-feed pay-tv channels in Bangladesh.

Through this agreement, BDDL, part of Beximco Group - the largest private sector group in Bangladesh, will be the first and currently the only foreign pay-tv channels distributor to avail downlinking services from BS-1, reads a press release.

Md Shafiqul Islam, managing director of BSCL and Jamanul Bahar of BDDL, formally signed the agreement on behalf of respective organisations in Dhaka Thursday. Among others, high officials of both organisations attended the ceremony.

BSCL Chairman and CEO, Dr Shahjahan Mahmood said, "Beximco is the biggest customer of BSCL. Today we have signed another agreement with Beximco for distributing 8 Foreign Clean-feed Pay-TV channels using BS-1. I believe the cooperation between BSCL & Beximco will grow even further in the coming days. In continuation of this historic moment, there is a good possibility of other foreign TV channels being added to BS-1."

"Bangladesh is at the cusp of a revolution in digital and HD adoption. The conversion from analogue to digital television broadcasting will provide newer and more secure ways of distribution of content which include Cable, IPTV, OTT and DTH", said Shayan F Rahman, Chairman, Beximco Digital Distribution Limited.

He added, "The most predominant form of TV distribution is currently through millions of Analogue cable connections which have no protection for consumers, limited capacity to carry channels, poor picture quality, lack of service, lack of addressability and no interactive services and critically rampant with piracy related to the TV channels which leads to the government deprived of substantial taxation income and lower revenues for broadcasters."