Focus: Regulatory

Imagine you are a European satellite operator looking to sell your capacity and land signals into a given region or territory. You’ve got the necessary ground segment and orbital resources in place, your mandatory International Telecommunication Union (ITU) filing secured and coordination in progress. If you were looking to wholesale the capacity only in Europe,...

The FCC, led by Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel, is working to develop a “single network future” in which satellite connectivity will help make terrestrial “dead zones” a thing of the past.  To advance this goal, the FCC in March 2024 adopted a “Supplemental Coverage from Space” (SCS) regulatory framework. The Commission’s SCS framework will allow satellite...

The FCC dismissed SpaceX’s request to use certain mobile satellite services (MSS) spectrum authorized to Globalstar and Dish in the Gen2 Starlink constellation, according to a March 26 FCC order.  In February 2023, SpaceX filed a modification for its Gen2 Starlink constellation application, petitioning to introduce an MSS component that would use 1.6/2.4 GHz bands,...

Rivada Space Networks’s now has market access in the United Kingdom after independent communications regulator Ofcom granted the company a license that enables the company to provide satellite communications services in the country. The company is launching a constellation of Low-Earth Orbit (LEO) satellites to provide government communications, maritime and aviation connectivity, enterprise networking and...

The FCC released a draft of the final order for a new regulatory framework for satellite-to-cell coverage, ahead of the Commission’s March meeting.  The FCC said that if approved, the report and order, Single Network Future: Supplemental Coverage from Space, would be the first domestic regulatory framework in the world focused on collaboration between satellite...

Omnispace received regulatory approval to operate S-band mobile satellite service (MSS) in Brazil, the company announced Feb. 19. Omnispace reports it now has market access to reach more than 735 million people across Latin America, Asia, Africa and the Middle East.  Brazil’s National Telecommunications Agency (ANATEL) approved subsidiary Omnispace Comunicações Brasil‘s request to operate the...

With the 2023 World Radiocommunications Conference (WRC) behind us it is time to look ahead to WRC-27. And what a road it will be to get there. WRC-23 made progress on many notable achievements including ensuring we have access to the spectrum we need for 5G terrestrial and non-terrestrial services, providing increased flexibility for operators,...

Vice President Kamala Harris on Wednesday announced a new U.S. policy for novel space activities — private sector activities that are not directly regulated under the current U.S. regulatory system. The policy was unveiled Dec. 20 at the third National Space Council meeting.  The White House said the U.S. Novel Space Activities Authorization and Supervision...

The FCC reaffirmed its 2022 decision to cancel Starlink funding for the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund, in an order issued Tuesday. Both Republican FCC Commissioners Brendan Carr and Nathan Simington issued dissents, and SpaceX said it “vehemently” disagrees with the decision.  At issue was the FCC dropping Starlink internet service from the first phase of...

Following four years of intense technical and regulatory work under the framework of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), national administrations and non-governmental organizations began meeting this week for the World Radiocommunication Conference (WRC-23) in Dubai. ITU-R has several institutional objectives. These include ensuring that radiocommunications are operated free of interference, but also promoting efficient use...