Satellite, European Broadcasters, Mobile Favor WRC Results

Mobile communications services now have a place “in broadcasting bands between 790 and 862 [MHz], but just after 2015,” said Lieven Vermaele, director of the European Broadcasting Union’s Technical Department. European countries may adopt IMT earlier than 2015, “but they have to take into account the important protection arrangements existing in analogue, existing in digital and future digital TV services,” Vermaele said. “It will be quite limited and quite difficult.”

Important protections are clearly defined, Vermaele said. The WRC conclusion clearly shows the interference problem, Vermaele said: “They asked to solve the problem, and they asked to do studies and come back with recommendations for the next conference in 2011.” The WRC agreement shows that the importance of existing and future implementations of TV in Europe, said Vermaele: “We are very happy.”

The global satellite industry was satisfied with the WRC result, said a joint statement by Intelsat, Inmarsat and SES. “This outcome represents a strong endorsement… of the critical nature and value of C-band satellite services as they exist today,” said Rob Bednarek, CEO of SES New Skies. The outcome permits further “development of new markets and services, including mobile broadband, by an industry well acquainted with customers real needs,” he said. The WRC decision to protect the C-band enables “us to continue offering essential communications to mobile users,” said Inmarsat Chairman Andrew Sukawaty. “The results from the conference were very positive for the satellite industry,” said Intelsat General Counsel Phil Spector.

“The four bands agreed for IMT will make it a bit harder to build equipment to roam,” said a business participant in the WRC, “but not impossible.” The band 450 to 470 MHz is a good one for global harmonization even though it can’t be used in North America, he said. Some parts of the 700 MHz frequencies are common and some aren’t, he said. “Maybe in 2015… a bit more spectrum can be identified for [IMT] to make it more globally common,” he said.

“We did quite well” on identifying spectrum for IMT, the WRC participant from industry said. Frequencies between 2,300 and 2,400 MHz are quite good, but won’t be used in North America, he said.

U.S. proposals for the WRC in 2011 include spectrum requirements and possible regulatory action, including allocations, for unmanned aircraft systems; regulatory measures for aeronautical mobile and aeronautical mobile route service between 112 and 117.975 MHz, 960 to 1,164 MHz and 5,000 and 5,030 MHz; review of radio regulations for passive services between 275 GHz and 3,000 GHz; possible procedures for free-space optical links; aeronautical mobile-satellite and maritime mobile service requirements; an examination of frequency allocations for ship and port safety systems; a primary allocation for space research service between 22.55 and 23.15 GHz; protecting 37 to 38 GHz from aeronautical mobile interference; possible allocations between 3 and 50 MHz for oceanographic radars; and a primary allocation to radiolocation between 15.4 and 15.7 GHz. Officials will meet Monday and Tuesday at the Conference Preparatory Committee to continue planning the work.

A record 164 administrations participated in the WRC, said ITU-R director Valery Timofeev. Regional coordination of joint proposals before the conference was critical for reaching decisions, he said. ITU paid to install wireless access in the Geneva conference center, where the WRC took place, Timofeev said. The result was nearly a paperless conference, he said. -- Scott Billquist

WRC Notebook…

Palestine got access to orbits in the fixed satellite service plan, said Francois Rancy of the French spectrum agency, chairman of the WRC. “What we have done is just mention that Palestine is entitled to have access, to apply the procedure to get that slot independently of Israel,” he said. The action treats Palestine as a full member in the application process, he said. The 1988 ITU satellite plan allocated satellite slots to countries that existed in 1988, Rancy said: “Since then, there have been 28 new countries.” A procedure added during the WRC lets them get slots, he said: “In applying this procedure, the new countries will have priority on other proposals to create new orbital slots. Palestine will enjoy this priority as well.” The main issue at the WRC was mobile development in Palestine, Rancy said. Israel and Palestine agreed in 2000 to start talks on spectrum issues, but they were held up, he said. Officials agreed at the WRC that talks would start “with an objective of completion and release of bands for mobile operators in Palestine by the end of this year,” Rancy said. Similar decisions were made at the WRC in 2000, he said. -- SB

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The WRC aligned ITU procedures for implementation of the Global Maritime Distress Safety System, said Fabio Leite, ITU-R deputy director. The radio regulations were updated for digital technology used in the maritime services, he said. Changes were approved in the service publications required to be onboard ships, he said.

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Correction: Chris van Diepenbeek said Asian countries favored 2.3 to 2.4 GHz for IMT, not for the Chinese technology. South Korea’s WiBro technology is geared to those frequencies, too (CD Nov 16 p6).