Sirius 2: European-wide satellite services from GE

In 1994, General Electric (GE) took the strategic decision to provide satellite communications services outside their traditional market in the US. GE Capital Satellites International was established to build on the experience and resources of GE Americom and provide a full range of satellite communications services in the European, African, and Asia-Pacific regions. The company´s first venture is in Europe, where from late 1997 GE Capital Satellites Europe will provide European-wide services via the new Sirius 2 Ku-band satellite owned and operated jointly with NSAB of Sweden. The author discusses the characteristics of this satellite, the market it is aimed at and applications