Russia launched a telecommunications satellite early Saturday from the Baikonur cosmodrome in Kazakhstan, Russian news agencies reported.

The HotBird-8 broadcasting satellite, carried by a Proton-M rocket, is designed for television and radio broadcasting and is owned by Eutelsat, one of the world's leading satellite operators, the reports said.

The satellite is scheduled to reach orbit at 0659 GMT, and once in operation, it could provide service to over 100 million users in Europe, the Middle East and North Africa.

Russia's previous launch of a Proton-M rocket failed to send an Arasat-4 satellite into orbit on Feb. 28.

Source: Xinhua