| Type | Satellite television |
|---|---|
| Industry | Telecommunication |
| Fate | Merged with Showtime Arabia into Orbit Showtime |
| Founded | 1994 |
| Headquarters | Manama, Bahrain |
| Products | Direct broadcast satellite and Satellite Internet |
| Owner(s) | Privately owned by Mawarid Holding [via Digital Media Systems] |
| Website | Official Site |
Orbit Communications Company was a privately owned Pay TV network, operating in the Middle East, North Africa and Europe. Owned by Saudi Arabia-based Mawarid Holding (via Digital Media Systems),[1][2] it was the first fully digital, multi-channel, multi-lingual, pay television service in the Middle East and North Africa. Orbit broadcasted in several languages around the world including English, Arabic and Punjabi. On July 12, 2009 the company announced its merger with Showtime Arabia into Orbit Showtime.
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Orbit had launched 4 multi-function interactive decoders:
This allowed the following features:
On April 1, 2008,[3] after being on the air since 1994,[4] Orbit ESPN disappeared from the Orbit lineup. This leaves Orbit without coverage of the NCAA, Major League Baseball, the National Hockey League, Major League Soccer, the National Football League, NASCAR, major golf and tennis tournaments, and the premier action sports franchise in the world, ESPN's X Games.
Fox Sports replaced Orbit ESPN on January 13, 2009.
One of the reasons that break the contract with ESPN is the severe financial problems happened at that time, since 1999-2000 the production graph line has been moved down. in 2009, a major delay in paying salaries for orbit employees in Egypt, Lebanon and KSA for more than 4 months.
On 21 April 1996, after 2 years on air, Orbit Communications Corporation (owned by Saudi King Fahd's cousin, Prince Khaled) pulled the plug on BBC Arabic Television after the BBC broadcast an episode of Panorama that was critical of the Saudi Arabian government. Many of the staff who worked for the original BBC Arabic Television service went on to work for Al-Jazeera television.[5]
On July 12, 2009 Showtime Arabia and Orbit Communications Company announced a merger that will create the “biggest Pay-TV platform” in the Middle East and North Africa.
The newly-formed company is an equal partnership that will offer 70 exclusive channels featuring new movies, sports, series, Arabic content and international shows.
New customers can subscribe to packages featuring Showtime Arabia's and Orbit Communications Company's programs, while existing subscribers will be able to either retain or upgrade their content. The company will offer HD channels, video on demand and other interactive services.