NEW YORK -The satellite broadcasting industry has achieved a record of innovation and growth that has drawn the attention of more than satisfied customers and wary cable companies concerned about losing market share.

Andy Wright, president of the Satellite Broadcasting and Communications Association (SBCA), told attendees at the May 20 SkyForum conference here that the industry now faces “new scrutiny” from the U.S. government at every level.

The industry must ensure that legislators and regulators implement fair public policies that allow the satellite industry to be as competitive as possible, Wright said. He cited as a prime example the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) decision to allow a new service called multichannel video distribution and data service (MVDDS) to share the direct broadcast satellite (DBS) spectrum.

To protect current and future U.S. satellite TV subscribers, the SBCA and the providers themselves are seeking to overturn the FCC’s spectrum-sharing decision in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia. That appeal is expected to be taken up by the court this fall to address whether terrestrial service entrant Northpoint Technology and others should be able to operate in a spectrum band previously reserved for satellite TV, Wright said.

“Unless reversed, this ruling will reduce consumer choice and competition,” Wright told more than 500 attendees at the forum in New York.

Later in the week, Wright pleaded the satellite TV industry’s case before the Senate communications subcommittee, warning of “potentially devastating interference” that may occur due to MVDDS use of satellite TV spectrum.

Another key issue on tap for the industry is the Satellite Home Viewer Improvement Act (SHVIA) passed in 1999, Wright said. That act provides a compulsory license for “distant network signals” and permits satellite TV providers to deliver local signals back into local markets.

Since SHVIA took effect, satellite TV’s share of the multichannel video market has “risen dramatically,” Wright said. Portions of the act will expire next year, unless renewed by Congress. “SBCA and its member companies are working to reauthorize SHVIA and to gain technical changes that will help level the playing field, and make DBS even more competitive with cable,” he said.

One of the “most exciting” challenges facing the satellite TV industry is the transition to digital broadcasting. Cable and consumer electronics manufacturers have signed a so- called “plug-and-play” agreement to pave the way for building digital cable ready TV sets.

“Those signatories have asked the FCC to impose the agreement on all multichannel video providers, including DBS, without input from the DBS industry or content providers,” Wright said. “SBCA is working to ensure that each multichannel video provider has the opportunity to negotiate its own agreement.”

The SBCA also is trying to ensure the industry has a fair chance to help bring high-speed data services to rural and underserved areas, Wright said. Satellite technology offers a national footprint that makes it ideal to deliver high-speed Internet access to this sizable segment of the broadband market. Any government incentives to provide such service should be available to all competitors in the marketplace, he added.

–Paul Dykewicz

(Andy Wright, SBCA, 703/739-8351)