Boeing Looks to Hand Off V-Band Broadband Constellation Plans to Greg Wyler

Wyler. In an FCC International Bureau filing Wednesday, the company asked for permission to amend its V-band constellation application to substitute in Wyler's SOM1101 as the one authorized to launch and operate the broadband constellation. Boeing denied its initial application was a case of spectrum speculation, saying it submitted it "in good faith with intent to construct a satellite system," but it and SOM1101 concluded "it would be more appropriate" for SOM1101 to be the licensee with Boeing "remain[ing] available to provide manufacturing and advisory service as needed." Boeing said SOM1101 "is well-positioned to bring innovative services to market." It said it won't profit from a SOM1101 license transfer when it's partially reimbursed for part of its NGSO application costs. It has been common for satellite manufacturers to file "on spec" for different systems as a means of spurring interest in new technologies, so it wouldn't be fair to suggest Boeing never had any intention of operating its own system, said Andrew D’Uva, president of satellite and wireless consultancy Providence Access. If Ku-band systems are "oceanfront properties," D'Uva said in an interview, V-band "is tomorrow’s river or bay-front real estate" -- requiring development but inevitably built on. He said Wyler's record in NGSO constellation concepts like O3b, being brought to operational fruition by subsequent investors, means any project in which he's involved "is likely to attract wide attention and interest." Boeing, OneWeb and O3b didn't comment.