Satcube on the Red Carpet at the Cannes Festival for Reliable Radio Broadcast over Satellite

Friday 1, July 2022

Cannes would not be the mecca of film without its festival-goers. The passion for cinema and the stars brings together 80,000 people on the Croisette. The radio station RFI went to meet them and broadcasted from the Festival with Marlink’s Media satcoms services.

 

Satcube The Challenge

The radio station Radio France International, RFI, was present at the 75th edition of the Cannes Film Festival (17-28 May 2022), to share the entire experience of the largest film festival in the world with its listeners from more than 150 countries.

To broadcast the latest news worldwide from the opening day to the closing ceremony, RFI was challenged by terrestrial network congestion caused by the huge number of users around Cannes.

 

The Solution

To assure guaranteed Internet access for reliable transmissions of their audio broadcasts, reports and interviews, RFI was using Marlink’s VSAT services. Indeed, for radio broadcasters, high voice quality standards are not an option, but a necessity!

RFI deployed the ultra-compact Satcube terminal – a flat panel antenna for people-on-the-go. This lightweight satellite broadband terminal at the size of a large laptop is designed for temporary use and is operated over global Ku-band.

Satcube offers simplicity of operation and satellite pointing enabling data-intensive transfers in a matter of minutes. Using this ultra-compact satellite terminal combined with Marlink’s 10/3 Mbps Ku-band service, RFI is now relying on a game-changing broadband, mobile and quick deploy solution.

This Comms-on-the-Pause service is now part of Marlink’s Land VSAT Mobility portfolio.

 

Key Achievements

RFI achieved the following successful takeaways:

  • Secure and reliable high throughput satellite connectivity for Internet access and media files transferred over IP on-the-go
  • Satellite link supporting audio/video codec for audio distribution from the field to the radio studio
  • Ultra-compact, lightweight panel antenna at the size of a large laptop
  • Satcube terminal easy to install and to point to satellite (connection time less than 3 minutes)
  • Hand baggage / Cabin bag weight & size allowance
  • Use of global Ku-band connectivity, with Satcube supporting data rates up to 3 Mbps up and 10 Mbps down
  • Flexible and cost-effective data plans supporting high volume of data transmission & critical communication applications
  • Marlink 24/7 technical support

 

RFI’s Feedback

We are thrilled to use the Satcube VSAT antenna which demonstrated great performance. We experienced very satisfying speeds of 3 Mbps up and 10 Mbps down which were perfect to transfer our audio files over IP from the festival to the radio studio in Paris. On top, the IP audio codec for audio distribution worked fine too, stated Denis Chastel, External Operations & Live Mobile Broadcast Manager. The Satcube is great for external Media operations and brings what Media needs: speed, reliability, and availability. The terminal is very easy to use, and the size of the antenna is suited for easy travels. It is a well-thought-out product and Marlink assures the support we need.

 

About RFI

Radio France Internationale, RFI, is a French public radio station broadcasting worldwide in French and 15 foreign languages. Alongside the TV channel France 24, RFI is part of the holding France Médias Monde which oversees TV and radio outside of France and collaborates closely with TV5 Monde. RFI has more than 1750 partner radio stations that broadcast its programmes across the world. RFI is listened to each week by 58+ million listeners, mainly Africans, and its website is visited by an average of 33.4 million Internet and mobile application users each month, while having 25.2 million followers on Facebook and Twitter. RFI’s editorial staff is based in Paris and its network of 480 correspondents offers daily factual news and information to understand the world.