United Group announced today that its Bulgarian operator Vivacom has been awarded full Tier 4 certification for Plana Teleport by the World Teleport Association following its recent audit of the facility.

Tier 4 is the highest possible certification in the field of teleport services and ranks the satellite station among the most modern facilities of its type in the world. It means that Plana Earth station covers the standards for top location, backed up technical equipment and professional 24/7 support – both with technical and commercial experts.

Only 19 teleports, including Plana Earth station, currently hold Tier 4 certification. This confirms that Plana’s customers receive services with the highest certified quality and reliability.

Since the previous audit, Vivacom has focused on developing services for business clients and now the ground station is broadcasting 4 DTH platforms with more than 400 TV channels for Eastern Europe and Africa.

Vivacom has also expanded its regional maritime VSAT services. Furthermore, the Plana Earth Station is an important part of key ground infrastructure for several satellite operators and their satellite constellations.

“We’re proud that Vivacom has demonstrated the highest standards in quality for satellite services, as defined by the WTA. The thorough audit conducted by WTA and the Tier 4 certification attests to the professionalism of our work and our commitment to being the best,” said Vivacom Senior Manager Broadcasting Services Vladimir Rangelov.

“By re-certifying the Vivacom Teleport at Tier 4,” said WTA executive director Robert Bell, “WTA is accomplishing the most important goal of the Certification program – not just to measure the factors that make for high quality of service, but to motivate improvement. We look forward to helping other teleport operators raise the quality of their facilities and procedures to better serve their customers and grow their businesses.”

The certification process is long and comprehensive, ensuring its objectivity. A teleport must meet more than 170 requirements, which the World Teleport Association verifies and analyses during an on-site audit.

The World Association’s Teleport Certification Program serves both teleport operators and their customers with its impartial, transparent, and internationally accepted method for documenting the quality of services to customers and strategic partners.

Certification is a reliable tool for customers in choosing teleport service providers, providing a clear basis to assessing price and quality.

At the end of 2020, Plana Teleport ranked 5th globally in terms of revenue growth from satellite services for business customers in WTA’s annual ranking of the fastest growing teleport operators.