The Planning and Implementation of the Public Television Satellite Interconnection System

John E. D. Ball

The Public Television Satellite Interconnection System will be fully operational by late 1978. The system has taken five years to plan and implement. Channels leased on the Western Union Westar satellite system provide a nationwide TV program distribution service to 165 public television stations located on the mainland, Alaska, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands. Public broadcasting owns, operates, and maintains the ground segment of the system, which consists of 145 receive-only earth terminals, five regional receive-transmit earth terminals, a main origination terminal, and approximately 80 microwave and cable links. The total cost for planning and implementing the system was $40 million.

Print ISSN
Published
1978-12
Content type
Original Research
DOI
10.5594/J10464