MUMBAI: Intelsat announced that Firestone Communications has expanded its use of the Intelsat Americas fleet for distribution of cable programming in North America.

The long-term contract, to utilise a full transponder on IA-13, will give Firestone Communications and its cable programming customers access to the satellite's prime cable arc location at 121° W, and connectivity to over 3,000 digital cable head-ends in the US.

Firestone Communications is a rapidly growing media and communications company offering a new, fully-digital, state-of-the-art network operations facility for programmers and producers around the world.

Accessing the IA-13 satellite allows Firestone Communications to leverage the prime cable distribution neighborhood on the satellite and significantly expand its customers viewing audiences.

"As we've grown our business, Intelsat's flexibility has provided us with more bandwidth within its cable programmer community, enabling us to better accommodate our customers needs. Intelsat now provides us with a full transponder's capacity and power allowing us to cost-effectively offer a full multiplex of cable channels," said Firestone Communications president Michael G Fletcher.

Intelsat COO Ramu Potarazu said, "Intelsat is actively committed to growing our video distribution community in the cable arc where IA-13 is located. Customers such as Firestone Communications help us achieve that growth as new cable channels are added to its customer lineup. Emerging cable programmers find immediate value in the cost-effective, turnkey program distribution services provided by Firestone Communications and Intelsat, which effectively lower market entry barriers and get channels up and running quickly."