Eutelsat (European Telecommunications Satellite Organization) is a French corporation founded in 1979. It operates 24 telecommunications satellites in geosynchronous orbit, under the family names Hot Bird, Atlantic Bird, Eurobird, e-BIRD, and Eutelsat. Its initial purpose was to complete the European telephone network. It now makes most of its income by providing facilities for television and radio broadcasters. Many of the founding investors sold their stakes in Eutelsat in 2004, including British Telecom, France Télécom, Deutsche Telekom and Telecom Italia.