On the 12 July 2001, ESA's next-generation telecommunications satellite, Artemis (Advanced Relay and Technology Satellite) will be launched on Ariane 5. The ESA TV Service has produced a series of three pre-event Exchange Programmes with background footage on this satellite. The first programme puts Artemis into the historic context of the development of satellite telecommunications since the launch of Sputnik in 1957, and into that of ESA's space application activities. Soundbites by Pietro Lo Galbo, Head of ESA's Telecommunications Department, outline the progress made in satellite communications and ESA's role in this segment dominated by commercial operators.