A court case has been heard by the US Court of Appeals between ABS, Hispasat and Arsat which had been arguing that the FCC should pause the date of Commission’s Dec auction of C-band frequencies over the US. The trio were deliberately excluded by the FCC from its incentive plan for C-band compensation given to […]
Eutelsat has told the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) that it will clear its required C-band spectrum over the US, and will order a new C-band satellite to provide replacement capacity for existing services. Eutelsat is required to clear its spectrum and have a satellite in orbit by 2023 in order to qualify for the FCC’s […]
As reported on June 16th, Luxembourg-based SES has ordered up four new satellites from US manufacturers to replace the C-band capacity it is giving up as part of the FCC’s accelerated C-band clearance plan. Northrop Grumman and the Boeing Company to manufacture and assemble the C-band only satellites in Dulles, Virginia and in Los Angeles, […]
The US satellite industry is about to get a few billions-worth of order for new craft. The new satellites will provide the fresh bandwidth to replace the C-band frequencies being given up as a result of the FCC’s push for 5G adoption in the US. Maxar Technologies has already said it has received a “multi-satellite” […]
The FCC, somewhat unusually, seems to have changed its mind and it is the world’s operators of Low Earth Orbiting (LEO) satellites which could benefit. FCC Chairman Ajit Pai said on June 9th that the Commission had changed the text on its draft order. “We did accommodate a request from a commissioner (Commissioner O’Rielly) to […]
The Federal Communications Commission says it is taking “important” steps to foster the growth of next-generation data services enabled by the transition of digital television to the ATSC 3.0 standard. That standard expands the potential ancillary and supplemental uses of broadcast spectrum for new and innovative services, such as autonomous vehicles, smart agriculture, or telemedicine, […]
Low Earth Orbiting (LEO) satellites are being positioned as a solution to bridge the US digital divide, as they will be able to reach remote parts of the country, promising fibre-like data speeds. A new report, LEO Satellite Broadband Expectations Need to Come Back to Earth, from co-operative bank CoBank’s Knowledge Exchange division, identifies significant […]
Intelsat might be in Chapter 11 bankruptcy restructuring, but trading continues. The satellite operator’s revenues were $458.8 million for Q1 (to March 31st) down 13 per cent, and after interest payments and other obligations, that turned into a net loss of $218.8 million for the quarter. The company reported significant downturns in Network Services (down […]
FCC Chairman Ajit Pai has confirmed that the repurposing of C-band spectrum for 5G services will move forward on an accelerated timeline. In a public notice, the FCC’s Wireless Telecommunications Bureau said it had secured commitments from all eligible satellite operators to meet an accelerated clearing timeline that will make way for faster 5G deployment […]
SES currently has two core deployments of satellites: It has a fleet of powerful geostationary satellites that just about serves the whole planet. It also has 20 O3b (‘the Other 3 Billion’) satellites in Medium Earth Orbit, with seven new ‘super-power’ O3b satellites on order from Boeing, with deployment starting in 2021. The O3b fleet […]