Satellite Firms’ Next ATC Adventure: Europe

CGC regulatory decisions are en route from the European Conference of Postal & Telecom Administrations (CEPT) and the EU, said TerreStar Vp-Regulatory Affairs Alexandra Field. Policies expected this fall may include an overarching plan for CGC regulation in Europe, Field said. TerreStar, ICO, Inmarsat and other MSS operators have been in Europe stoking the process, but it isn’t easy. “In Europe, they're still trying to figure out if ATC is a competitor to terrestrial wireless,” or a potential partner, Field said, speaking at a Society of Satellite Professionals meeting Tues.

Public safety paradigms differ in Europe, Field said. Most N. American ATC schemes aim at the mass market, but are built around a critical public safety concept: Backing up wireless networks with a satellite overlay should terrestrial operations fail. The FCC is keen on the idea; MSS operators hope European regulators will be, too. But not all European nations have faced the hard lessons -- from 9/11 to Hurricane Katrina -- that taught U.S. regulators how important communications networks are, Field said: “Europe sort of knows, but hasn’t completely figured it out. Their public safety focus is often on transportation, and they don’t realize communication is central to that too.”

In the U.S., ATC rules are in place; the FCC is watching MSS and waiting for MSS firms to execute. That may be sooner than most realize -- on the space side, that is. Recent 2 GHz spectrum winners TerreStar and ICO have 2007 FCC satellite launch milestones. Mobile Satellite Ventures must launch its next generation L-band satellites in 2009 and 2010. L-band competitor Inmarsat has 2 next-gen Inmarsat 4 satellites in orbit, launching a 3rd in 2007. Globalstar has said it will replenish its LEO fleet with 8 stored satellites in 2007.

But no MSS operator has the ground system FCC ATC rules authorize. MSV and Globalstar are the only MSS operators with ATC licenses, but ICO, Inmarsat and TerreStar say they intend to apply. With satellites being built, each MSS operator is said to be searching for a strategic partner to build a terrestrial wireless network. AWS auction dropouts DirecTV and EchoStar are often rumored to be ATC favorites. So are wireless operators, telcos, mobile broadband providers, mobile video ventures, and firms looking for a nationwide swath of spectrum for some manner of mobile play. Everyone is talking to everyone, seems to be the MSS/ATC mantra. But analysts ask: “Why wasn’t there a deal yesterday?”

The AWS auction has helped clarify the future of MSS/ATC, in terms of spectrum pricing and different players’ spectrum needs, MSS executives said. “A whole series of events have clarified the value of wireless spectrum,” said Inmarsat’s Diane Cornell, listing BRS, AWS, and 700 MHz. “Our spectrum compares with the F-block spectrum in AWS,” ICO Pres. Craig Jorgans told the Jefferies communications conference Tues. The F-block is trading for 73 cents MHz/pop, Jorgans said. The Jefferies appearance was ICO’s first as a public company, CEO Tim Bryan said. ICO began trading on NASDAQ Wed.

But Jorgans misspoke Tues. when he told investors ICO has an ATC license. ICO is licensed by the FCC to occupy 20 MHz in the S-band, but hasn’t submitted an ATC application. When ATC applications from MSS operators do start reaching the FCC, “we hope we'll benefit from the learning curve,” Inmarsat Vp-Govt. Affairs Diane Cornell said separately at the SSPI meeting. The U.S. ATC framework is pretty well settled, she said. Aside from a Globalstar request to expand its ATC authority across all 28 MHz of its frequencies, no ATC petitions for reconsideration or appeals are pending.

MSS operators working on ATC plays “don’t have to be psychic,” in designing spacecraft for specific applications, Field said. MSS satellites being built by Space Systems/Loral and Boeing incorporate ground-based beam forming, allowing the intricacies of an ATC network to be controlled from the ground after satellite launch, the firms have said. “There’s a long lead time in this industry, so we're good at adapting,” Field said. As for mobile receivers -- handsets or modems -- MSS firms are testing protocols from WiMAX to CDMA. When it comes to handsets, “chips are cheap. There are a lot of ways you can design them,” said MSV Vp- Regulatory Affairs Jennifer Manner.

“What we're trying to do is keep our options open. That’s the smartest thing for ICO to do at this point,” Bryan told investors at Jefferies: “The satellite is totally flexible and won’t have to have any changes. All of the ground components necessary to operate MSS will be in order about the same time, a year from now, and we'll be able to operate satellite services. The terrestrial network will develop over time.”