SES Platform Services
| Company type | Privately owned subsidiary |
|---|---|
| Industry | Telecommunications Digital media services for the broadcast sector |
| Founded | 2004 |
| Headquarters | Unterföhring, Germany |
Key people | Wilfried Urner (CEO) |
| Products | Satellite and broadcasting solutions |
| Website | ses-ps |
SES Platform Services GmbH—previously known as ASTRA Platform Services GmbH and later as MX1 before integrating into SES Video—functioned as a subsidiary of SES, the operator of the Astra satellite fleet, with its headquarters located in Unterföhring, near Munich, Germany. The company managed a broadcast centre delivering services such as content management, playout, encryption, multiplexing, satellite uplinks, alongside other digital TV broadcasting solutions tailored for the media industry.
Following the acquisition of the global digital media provider RR Media in July 2016, SES Platform Services adopted the MX1 brand. Subsequently, in September 2019, MX1 was fully merged into SES Video, leading to the discontinuation of the MX1 name.
Prior to transitioning to MX1, SES Platform Services handled distribution for more than 300 digital television channels—including HD offerings—as well as radio stations, interactive formats, and data services. In August 2013, the firm won an international tender from Turner Broadcasting System to manage playout operations for Turner’s German-speaking channels such as Boomerang, Cartoon Network, glitz*, RT, TNT Film, and TNT Serie in both SD and HD. This agreement also encompassed digitizing Turner’s content and managing playout for on-demand and catch-up platforms across Germany, Austria, Switzerland, and the Benelux countries.
History
The company was initially established in 1996 under the name DPC (Digital Playout Centre GmbH) by KirchMedia AG, a German media conglomerate. DPC provided services including playout, multiplexing, encrypted satellite uplinks, and broadcast media support primarily to Premiere (now Sky Deutschland) along with other German broadcasters. In June 2004, SES purchased a majority stake in DPC from Premiere with the objective of launching an "open" pay-TV platform within Germany compatible with Premiere’s set-top boxes.
After receiving clearance from the German Federal Cartels Office in December 2004, SES proceeded to acquire full ownership of DPC. The company was subsequently renamed ASTRA Platform Services GmbH (APS), before adopting the SES Platform Services identity in April 2012.
In February 2016, SES Platform Services announced its intent to acquire RR Media, an Israel-based global digital media service provider, pending regulatory approval.
Services
SES Platform Services delivers a comprehensive suite of services encompassing Content Management, Playout, Encryption, Distribution, and Interactive solutions for broadcasters. Its client portfolio includes Sky Deutschland, ProSiebenSat.1 in Germany, South Africa’s Top TV, Home Shopping Europe, DSF, Tele 5, 9Live, DMAX, alongside numerous German HDTV channels such as Discovery and Anixe.
Content management services involve digitizing tape-based archives, converting formats, conducting quality control checks, and transitioning from physical tape storage to digital archives integrated with asset management platforms. Employing Front Porch Digital’s DIVArchive system, SES Platform Services administers over one petabyte of digital storage with an influx of approximately 1000–2000 hours of new content each month. The adoption of digital archiving has reduced reliance on tape storage by more than fifty percent.
The company handles content preparation and playout aligned with client schedules while providing visual quality monitoring, on-screen branding including 2D/3D graphics integration, Electronic Program Guide (EPG) data management, and scalable service levels ranging from automated channel startups to comprehensive monitoring and support.
Interactive offerings include HbbTV (Hybrid Broadcast Broadband TV) solutions and broadcaster web page design. SES developed Blucom—a hybrid interactive TV platform merging broadcast and mobile technologies that facilitates program alerts, weather forecasts, audience voting, content downloads, chat functions, advertising opportunities, and live TV streaming on mobile devices. Blucom synchronizes television content with supplementary data transmitted via satellite to set-top boxes and mobile phones through Bluetooth or UMTS/GPRS networks.
For pay-TV transmissions, SES Platform Services implements channel encryption utilizing systems such as Conax, Cryptoworks, Irdeto, Nagravision, and conditional access via DVB simulcrypt technology supporting multiple CA systems concurrently—a standard approach in free-to-air satellite markets like Germany. Additionally, the company provides Microsoft or Flash DRM protection for internet-streamed channels.
While predominantly managing SD and HD digital television uplinks via Astra satellites, SES Platform Services also distributes live or on-demand video content to mobile devices over the Internet using platforms such as Windows Media Player, QuickTime, or Flash.
In April 2011, SES inaugurated a new playout centre at its Unterföhring headquarters featuring cutting-edge infrastructure including groundwater-cooled air conditioning systems, redundant power supplies, and LED lighting designed to reduce heat generation within the master control room. The former facility remains operational as a backup site; this new centre was built to accommodate growth projections for at least five years.
In June 2015, SES introduced Fluid Hub—a managed cloud-based platform designed for video content management, playout operations, and distribution targeting studios, content producers, broadcasters, telecommunications providers/platforms among others. By October 2015 Fluid Hub had attracted ten clients including Fox International Channels Germany and Turner.