SpaceX Believed to Have a Better Second Shot at 2 GHz MSS Use
The FCC, which previously shot down SpaceX's plans to operate in the 2 GHz band, will likely think differently now, satellite spectrum experts said. The company applied Friday to launch and operate as many as 15,000 satellites to provide direct-to-device (D2D) service globally. The constellation would use spectrum that SpaceX is buying from EchoStar, including the 2 GHz band.
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The agency's Space Bureau denied SpaceX's request 18 months ago to operate its second-generation satellites in the 2 GHz, 1.6/2.4 GHz and 2020-2025 MHz bands (see 2403270002). The FCC said then that the 1.6/2.4 GHz and 2 GHz bands weren't available for additional mobile satellite system (MSS) operations.
"Today, circumstances have fundamentally changed," SpaceX said in its new application. Since the company is buying EchoStar's AWS-4 and AWS-H block licenses and 2 GHz MSS market authorization, the logic behind the bureau's dismissal now "compels the opposite result." The FCC should grant the application, as SpaceX "is now the only operator capable of deploying service in the band under the existing framework." Its $17 billion spectrum deal with EchoStar was announced earlier this month (see 2509080052).
Considering that SpaceX now owns the 2 GHz spectrum and has the potential to run a satellite/terrestrial network, its "argument is sound," Recon Analytics' Roger Entner said in an email. However, he added, SpaceX's use of the MSS spectrum is likely at least two years out.
Summit Ridge Group's Armand Musey told us he expects FCC approval fairly quickly, given how FCC Chairman Brendan Carr pushed for the SpaceX/EchoStar deal. "It would not make sense to dawdle around too much, now that SpaceX has a plan and is apparently willing to invest a lot of money to make it happen," Musey said.
However, he added, 15,000 satellites is a huge constellation. The FCC, and potentially other agencies, might have to conduct detailed orbital debris and safety reviews, he said. There also could be a DOJ review or objection to the EchoStar/SpaceX license transfer, which could cause delays, he said.
Satellite and spectrum consultant Carlos Placido emailed that the FCC tends to approve SpaceX filings and modifications "rather quickly." However, for D2D service, there could be increased scrutiny because it's "a hot topic [and] a highly sensitive one," he said. Traditional telecom operators like AT&T and Verizon "may still push back against satellite-based [mobile network operator] initiatives, and for obvious competitive reasons."
In its application, SpaceX said it wanted to operate in the 2000-2025 MHz and 2180-2200 MHz bands, which includes the 2000-2020 MHz and 2180-2200 MHz AWS-4 spectrum it's buying from EchoStar. The company will also offer supplemental coverage from space (SCS) in the U.S. in the AWS-H block spectrum from EchoStar, as well as the PCS G block, it said.
In addition, SpaceX said it's planning for MSS outside the U.S. using bands including the L, extended L and international 2 GHz, along with SCS through arrangements with terrestrial mobile operators using spectrum between 1429 and 2690 MHz.
The 2 GHz and AWS-H block bands "are fundamentally underused today," the satellite operator said, and it "stands ready to rapidly deploy service, significantly enhancing the ubiquitous mobile coverage SpaceX provides today via its SCS system." SpaceX would be the only co-channel MSS or terrestrial mobile service licensee in the U.S. in the bands, the company noted, so it wouldn't present any material risk of interference to other operators there.
SpaceX said that since it's acquiring EchoStar's terrestrial AWS-4 licenses in the 2 GHz band, it's contemplating deploying ground-based systems in the U.S., "creating a hybrid satellite/terrestrial network to expand the coverage and capacity of these services."
The 15,000 satellites would operate at an altitude around 330 kilometers, it said. The company didn't say when it hoped to start the first launch of the constellation.