Divine renames app to 'Islam Divine'

Divine, the community project that leverages space technologies to broadcast the Quran from space,  today announced that it has renamed its mobile app to Islam Divine to make it easier to be found by users on the Apple App Store and Google Play Store.

Formerly known as Divine Live, Islam Divine features an enhanced user interface (UI) that includes a day/night switch, wallpapers, and colours inspired by Islamic art. 

For those new to Islam, or keen in accessing more information on it, the developers have added a chat, where users can ask questions on Islam. More information has also been added on the daily obligatory prayers.

Users who are more well-versed in Islamic teachings can now save and copy content from the Quran, du'a' and hadith (prayers and associated accounts) on the app. A new bookmarking feature allows users to save their spot in the religious text.

Divine was founded in 2021 to dispel misconceptions and stereotypes of the teachings of the Quran and to present a better understanding of what the Quran is for young and new Muslim communities, and the world.

By hosting information in terrestrial servers in space, Divine is able to transmit the teachings of the Quran to a wider audience due to the large coverage area afforded by the satellite. The content is transmitted from space to several platforms built for the Divine project, including the Divine official site; as well as the Islam Divine app.

Divine is operated and managed by Eurasian Space Ventures (ESV), a private company registered in Kazakhstan which aims to serve as an international hub for space projects and related organisations looking to capitalise on the well-established space infrastructure and ecosystem in the country. It is an initiative under the I AM PART OF global charity foundation established by entrepreneur Shukhrat Ibragimov.

Eutelsat buys over NOORSAT in US$75 million deal

Eutelsat Communications has acquired NOORSAT, a major satellite service provider in the Middle East, from Bahrain’s Orbit Holding Group.

Established in 2004, NOORSAT is the premier distributor of Eutelsat capacity in the Middle East, serving blue-chip customers and providing services for over 300 TV channels almost exclusively from Eutelsat’s Middle East and North Africa neighbourhoods at 7/8° West and 25.5° East.

The acquisition of NOORSAT fits with Eutelsat’s broader strategy of streamlining distribution within selected core video neighbourhoods where it can create value. It will allow Eutelsat to strengthen the long term commercial development of its market-leading video positions in the Arabic world and increase its direct access to end-customers, facilitating stimulation of high definition (HD) TV takeup and the upselling of incremental video services.

Michel Azibert, Eutelsat Chief Commercial and Development Officer, said: “NOORSAT’s capabilities and market knowledge will further consolidate our longstanding position in the dynamic Middle East video market. By integrating NOORSAT’s service platform and teams we are underlining our commitment to serving customers in one of the key markets within in our global footprint."

Eutelsat has acquired 100% of NOORSAT for a consideration of US$75 million, debt-free and cash-free. The acquisition will add upwards of US$15 million to Eutelsat’s consolidated revenues on an annualised basis after the elimination of the capacity leased by Eutelsat from NOORSAT.