First C-Band Priority: Continued Satellite Usage, ViaSat CEO Says; Bogdan-Martin Gets Pai Nod

Meanwhile, satellite officials said some potentially contentious issues face satellite interests at the 2019 World Radiocommunication Conference. Paige Atkins, NTIA associate administrator in the Office of Spectrum Management, said the technical issues before WRC-19 are "more complex and challenging" than ever given the increasing push for terrestrial and satellite sharing of bands and the lack of a clear consensus on defining satellite protection criteria for sharing with mobile services. But Intelsat Vice President-Corporate and Spectrum Strategy Hazem Moakkit said there aren't particularly polarizing agenda items like there have been in past WRCs, which could lead to "more practical outcomes."

Dankberg and Intelsat CEO Stephen Spengler shared a stage and very divergent views on the C-band clearing and sharing plan. Spengler said the plan wasn't driven by cooperation with wireless interests but the fact the spectrum "was under aggressive attack," and the pragmatic approach is protecting incumbent customers while allowing joint use. He said satellite needs to recognize there may be areas of collaboration with other industries: "We shouldn't pass up those ... when it makes sense."

But satellite isn't just a rural solution and the industry needs to "think carefully" about surrendering bandwidth in metropolitan areas just because its current services don't necessarily fit there, Dankberg said. Given how hard spectrum is to come by, satellite needs "to not surrender," he said.

Spengler said the investment community is being short sighted in its current bearishness on satellite companies, given the huge demand for data services. He said satellite will be part of the 5G architecture, but it still has "a lot of work to do" toward smaller and cheaper terminals and on standards that allow for seamless transition between different networks. Dankberg said satellite needs to follow terrestrial's lead and focus its bandwidth where there's demand, paying more attention to geographic distribution. He said within a few years, "bandwidth will be taken for granted" with all networks providing enough for most services, and the bigger differentiator will be on cybersecurity and privacy issues.

Eutelsat CEO Rodolphe Belmer and incoming SES CEO Steve Collar said the video distribution business is strong and has a long life. Collar said conversations with customers are always long term, involving at least 10-year commitments. Belmer said analyst doubts about the video business are driven by the U.S., which is an atypical market, with penetration growing everywhere else.

Experts said key items for satellites at WRC-19 are items 1.5, on use of the 17.7-19.7 downlink and 27.5-29.5 uplink bands by earth stations in motion communicating with geostationary satellites in fixed satellite service (FSS); 1.6, about development of a regulatory framework for non-geostationary orbit FSS in the V-band; and 7, on registration of satellite networks with the ITU, including a variety of NGSO-related issues.

ITU Working Party 4A, responsible for agenda item 7, is coming to consensus on the idea of one satellite, operating across all the frequencies being filed for and being launched within seven years of an application, would be a sufficient initial milestone, said Boeing Senior Director-Frequency Management Services Audrey Allison. She said there's growing consensus about extending that seven-year deadline to as much as 15 years while using a deployment factor equation that would decrease the size of the allowed constellations for missing deadlines, rather than the license being lost altogether.

The V-band is “the next frontier” for commercial satellite system growth, Allison said. There are FSS and MSS allocations there, but that it hasn't been ready for commercialization accounts for lack of regulatory provisions on areas like sharing, she said. With technology development, "Only now do we see the opportunity," she said.

Other satellite agenda items of note on the WRC-19 agenda include 1.2, on power limits of earth stations in mobile, meteorological and earth exploration satellite services in the 401-403 MHz and 299.9-400.05 MHz bands; 1.3, on allocations to the meteorological and Earth exploration satellite services in the 460-470 MHz band; and 1.7, covering telemetry, tracking and command for NGSOs with short-duration missions, said Dante Ibarra, FCC WRC director. Ibarra said as the millimeter wave bands attract new technologies, there will be multiple services vying for the same spectrum and there needs to be good processes for dealing with those overlapping bands, not only at WRC-19 but also WRCs beyond.

Satellite 2018 Notebook

Satellite companies are putting up "innovative ideas" for opening mid-band spectrum such as the 3.7-4.2 GHz band, Chairman Ajit Pai told the Satellite Industry Association's annual Leadership Dinner Monday, according to prepared remarks. He also urged support of Doreen Bogdan-Martin, chief of ITU’s Strategic Planning and Membership Department, for ITU telecommunication development sector secretary. The NTIA chief also recently endorsed her (see 1803080058). Acknowledging satellite industry criticisms about Connect America Fund Phase II reverse auction criteria, Pai hopes the industry "will study this opportunity closely and choose to participate." Pai is "committed to ... common-sense solutions" worked out with other agencies and the private sector to address space debris concerns. He said the U.S. goal in preparation for WRC-19 is a regulatory framework for non-geostationary satellite orbit operations and more opportunities for earth stations in motion as a route toward aeronautical and maritime connectivity. He said the FCC also is studying spectrum needs of short-duration and small satellites. He said the agency will support changes to the satellite publication, notification and coordination procedures that lead to improved use of orbits.

SoftBank mergers and acquisitions head Alex Clavel said as the company goes country to country, talking to regulators about access for OneWeb, the focus is on digital divide issues and connectivity for those nations' rural or isolated populations. He said the first-generation of the OneWeb constellation won't bring levels of broadband connectivity seen in, for example, affluent suburbs, but additional throughput will come in future generations. He said the first-gen constellation also will focus on markets like backhaul and aeronautical and maritime connectivity. He said SoftBank had "lots of dialogue" with antenna companies about developing technology to enable the OneWeb constellation. He said OneWeb is looking to individual nations' universal access funds to help make its service affordable to developing nations and in rural states: "We're open minded to using our capital aggressively" to bring down antenna prices. Asked when SoftBank hopes to see returns from its OneWeb investment, Clavel said SoftBank investments are often 12- to 20-plus years and its OneWeb goal is "massive returns over the long term."