TRACING THE SOUND OF THE CITY
In December 2006, TRACE TV selected capacity provided by Eutelsat to extend
its reach to the Caribbean and the Americas. This is just the latest advance of
a broadcaster that is mapping the world with urban sounds
Since its launch in 2003, TRACE TV has
aimed to reflect France’s widespread interest
in urban music and culture. At the time, urban
music, (hip-hop, rap, contemporary R&B,
even reggae) accounted for the largest sales
of music CDs in France, a fact not reflected
by music channels. The channel was set up in
Paris, offering a global mix of urban music to
the 15-24 year age group.
Expanding beyond Europe, TRACE TV’s next
step was to target French-speaking countries
in Africa and in the space of just four years
has widened its net to cover large parts of
the globe, broadcasting localised content to
Europe, Africa, parts of Asia and now to the
Caribbean and North and South America.
Globally, the pay-TV channel is available to 40
million households in 98 countries.
A partner in innovation
Eutelsat has accompanied TRACE TV from
launch, providing satellite coverage and a
broader partnership that has enabled the
company to grow at such a rich rate.
Today, TRACE TV is broadcast via three
Eutelsat satellites; HOT BIRD™ 8, which
delivers DTH and to cable headends in Europe,
North Africa and the Middle East; and W5 and
TELSTAR 12, which also feed cable headends
in the above regions, plus significant parts of
Asia and the Americas. Content, broadcast in
French and English, reflects the geographic
regions which the channel reaches.
Olivier Laouchez, Chairman and CEO of
TRACE TV commented on the important
role that Eutelsat has played in the channel’s
successful expansion; “Eutelsat has not merelyenabled us to expand through providing
technical solutions; they have been a true
partner in every sense of the word, joining
with us in marketing ventures, advising us on
new territories and facilitating partnerships
with other like-minded companies, for mutual
benefit.”
Urban mobility
TRACE TV is also available to viewers via a
selection of mobile platforms, in countries
including France, Belgium, Spain, Portugal
and Poland. In France, mobile operator
Orange, has ranked TRACE TV 7th out of the
top 50 downloads. Similar deals have recently
included an agreement with China Mobile,
China’s largest mobile network which finished
2006 boasting an amazing 301.2 million
wireless subscribers, which is just a little over
the entire US population!
