Jerry Petersen
Intelsat CEO and past Wash100 award winner David Wajsgras said in a recent interview that the fate of his company’s brand once the merger with SES is completed is still being discussed by himself and SES CEO Adel Al-Saleh with input from “[inside] and outside people and groups.”
Wajsgras told Via Satellite that losing the Intelsat brand completely “doesn’t seem to make a lot of sense” especially since it “has a very strong and positive reputation” but noted that the current “plan of record” is that the company resulting from the combination will be known as SES.
Looking ahead, Wajsgras expressed confidence that the combined Intelsat/SES company will be able to compete with the likes of Starlink and Kuiper because of its ability to offer connectivity at multiple orbits: geostationary, medium Earth and low Earth orbit.
“I am quite optimistic that this capability will be fielded in the next couple of years and give us a platform that is truly differentiated from what a LEO-only provider can offer,” Wajsgras said.
As for his role in the combined company, Wajsgras revealed that it “is all in discussions” but made it clear that he “will not be part of the management of the new company.”
Wajsgras underscored, however, that at this point, he is keen on ensuring the success of the merger. “[If] there is a way I can help that, I will do it,” the Intelsat CEO said.
