Satellite fleet operator Eutelsat on May 12 said downward pressure on its U.S. Defense Department business is lasting longer than expected and that the struggles of its Russian television customers are also weighing on results. The company also said growth in subscribers from its large Ka-Sat Ka-band consumer broadband satellite is slowing as Ka-Sat's beams over high-demand regions in Britain, Ireland and France reach saturation. The company said Ka-Sat had 180,000 active subscribers as of March 31, up 5,000 from Dec. 31. In a conference call with investors, Eutelsat management said it is taking steps to stimulate demand in other Ka-Sat coverage areas, especially among businesses, and that the company is actively seeking airline partners for an aeronautical broadband business. Eutelsat has an agreement with broadband hardware and service provider ViaSat Inc. of Carlsbad, California, to combine the two companies' broadband satellites to offer unbroken Ka-band coverage over North Atlantic air and sea routes once ViaSat's ViaSat-2 satellite is launched in 2016.
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