The Russian Space Agency said Tuesday that Japan's JSAT Corporation had concluded a deal with Russian-U.S. joint venture International Launch Services (ILS) to launch the JCSAT-11 geostationary telecommunications satellite on board a Proton-M carrier rocket in 2007.
JSAT's principal activity is the operation of satellites and provision of transponder capacity for telecommunications and broadcasting usage. The company owns and operates nine satellites covering North America, Hawaii, Asia and Oceania. Its clients include NTT Communication Corporation, an international telecommunications services provider, and SKY Perfect TV, a leading digital broadcasting service provider in Japan.
ILS is a global leader in the space launch industry, offering two launch vehicles: the U.S.-made Atlas and Russia's Proton. The venture comprises the American aerospace giant Lockheed Martin and Russia's two space-industry leaders: the Khrunichev Space Center and the Energia Rocket and Space Corporation. Since 1996, the company has conducted 35 commercial launches, including 26 with Proton-K and 9 with Proton-M carrier rockets.
