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2010 ARTHUR C. CLARKE LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD HONOURS
GIULIANO BERRETTA, CHAIRMAN OF THE BOARD OF EUTELSAT COMMUNICATIONS

Paris, Washington, D.C. April 28, 2010

The Washington D.C.-based Arthur C. Clarke Foundation has honoured Giuliano Berretta, Chairman of the Board of Eutelsat Communications, as the 2010 winner of the “Arthur C. Clarke Lifetime Achievement Award”. Bestowed annually, the Lifetime Achievement Award recognises an individual, a group or an entity that exemplifies the values and accomplishments of Clarke, the writer and scientist whose expertise and vision ushered in the age of satellite communications.

The Award was presented on Tuesday, April 27 at Intelsat’s offices in Washington D.C. before an invited audience. On the same occasion, the Foundation’s Innovator Award was bestowed on Dr Simon Pete Worden for his many decades of leadership in space exploration.

“There is no doubt whatsoever that Sir Arthur would have rejoiced at our selection of Giuliano Berretta for the 2010 Arthur C. Clarke Lifetime Achievement Award,” said Foundation chairman Tedson J. Meyers. “Recall, when Sir Arthur’s paper was published in 1945 in Wireless World, the editor of this highly authoritative journal warily gave it the title “Extra-Terrestrial Relays”, whereas the author’s original choice was “The Future of World Communications”. Few individuals among us today have equalled Giuliano Berretta in fulfilling that future, delivering communications to both the served and underserved across the planet. For us, he is a model for others to follow, and a splendid choice.”

Giuliano Berretta was selected by the Foundation for his longstanding advocacy of commercial satellite communications. During his exceptional career at the European Space Agency and at Eutelsat, the Foundation considered that three key drivers have constantly motivated his activity: the pursuit of technical innovation, a quest for developing economically viable applications of real value for users, and the need to keep focused on a responsible attitude to resources in space. His own vision and ambition for the ‘Clarke Belt’ has played a pivotal role in building a global commercial satellite sector, which has transformed television broadcasting markets, the performance of global data networks, access to the Internet and the efficiency of critical relief operations. Eutelsat and Giuliano Berretta’s indebtedness to Clarke was affirmed in 2000 when the company’s SESAT1 satellite was dedicated to him and his vision for the geostationary orbit mapped out in 1945 in his landmark article in Wireless World.

Past Clarke Lifetime Achievement winners are CBS Evening News anchorman Walter Cronkite, science fiction writer Ben Bova and first Intelsat director general, Santiago Astrain.

For information, contact Foundation Secretary Scott Chase at scottchase@verizon.net or 301/879-1613.

About Eutelsat Communications

Eutelsat Communications (Euronext Paris: ETL, ISIN code: FR0010221234) is the holding company of Eutelsat S.A.. With capacity commercialised on 26 satellites that provide coverage over the entire European continent, as well as the Middle East, Africa, India and significant parts of Asia and the Americas, Eutelsat is one of the world's three leading satellite operators in terms of revenues. At 31 December 2009, Eutelsat’s satellites were broadcasting more than 3,400 television channels and close to 1,100 radio stations. More than 1,000 channels broadcast via its HOT BIRD™ video neighbourhood at 13 degrees East which serves over 123 million cable and satellite homes in Europe, the Middle East and North Africa. The Group’s satellites also serve a wide range of fixed and mobile telecommunications services, TV contribution markets, corporate networks, and broadband markets for Internet Service Providers and for transport, maritime and in-flight markets. Eutelsat's broadband subsidiary, Skylogic, markets and operates services through teleports in France and Italy that serve enterprises, local communities, government agencies and aid organisations in Europe, Africa, Asia and the Americas. Headquartered in Paris, Eutelsat and its subsidiaries employ 635 employees from 27 countries.

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