The FCC's allowing C-band earth stations that tried to properly register for the incumbents list but didn't complete certain procedural requirements to fix their errors wouldn't hinder the agency's ability to run a timely auction, NCTA and NAB officials told a Chairman Ajit Pai aide, said a docket 20-205 ex parte posting Wednesday. Some registrants didn't understand the requirement to certify the accuracy of earth station information that were already properly registered before the C-band proceeding even began, they said. Others, in good faith, misunderstood the requirement to register every individual antenna at a collocated site, they said.

Comments are due Sept. 9 on creating a national plan for positioning, navigation and timing resilience, said an Office of Science and Technology Policy notice in Monday's Federal Register. OSTP said the plan will focus on R&D and testing needed to develop resilient PNT systems and services that don't depend on global navigation satellite systems.

Intelsat officials met with FCC staff on its thought process in planning to seek reimbursement for the costs of replacing seven satellites necessary for its C-band clearing activities, said a docket 18-122 ex parte posting Monday. It said the commission requested the details, and its previous satellite deployment plans went through "drastic changes" in response to the FCC's band-clearing plan and its accelerated deadlines. Intelsat said it also explained how the C-band order necessitated more replacement satellites than had been anticipated under the C-Band Alliance approach. And it said its estimated costs for satellite reimbursement are at the lower end of the cost catalog "and certainly lower" than comparable facilities, especially when replacing multi-band satellites. The meeting included Wireless Bureau Chief Don Stockdale. Intelsat estimated satellite replacement costs at $790 million (see 2006220006).

Alascom no longer is a big user of the C-band payload on AMC-8 and wants to give up its position as joint licensee alongside SES, SES said in an FCC International Bureau application Monday seeking to be the satellite's sole licensee. SES said the FCC traditionally has assessed Alascom a regulatory fee of 71% of the total amount, reflecting that company's use of most of AMC-8's transponders, but starting with FY 2020 the FCC should assess the full annual regulatory fee on it.

Kansas cable ISP Cunningham Communications wants the FCC to reconsider not including its C-band earth station on the commission's incumbent earth station list, making it eligible for relocation costs. In a docket 20-205 application for review Tuesday, it said it filed to register the earth station during the 2018 registration window, and remitted payment in July, yet it was inexplicably not on the incumbents list. It said the C-band transition could cost it $200,000. It also asked for waiver of any timely registration fee requirement that would make its late payment not eligible to be considered incumbent. The FCC didn't comment.

Challengers to SpaceX's ask to move 2,824 broadband satellites to a lower orbit (see 2004200003) told the FCC International Bureau the company hasn't resolved concerns. OneWeb said in a reply posting Friday SpaceX hasn't shown its system won't cause uplink interference to OneWeb Ka-band operations, and any OK of SpaceX's license modification should include limits on what kind of interference protection SpaceX can claim for its gateway earth stations. Kuiper said SpaceX hasn't tackled the safety concerns stemming from the orbital overlap between large non-geostationary orbit (NGSO) constellations. It said the proposed changes create a new operating environment, meaning the redesign should be considered as part of the 2020 processing round. SES/O3b said "the radical changes" should be treated as newly filed. It said SpaceX also apparently moved from its original plan to use phased array antennas to communicate with its Ka-band gateway earths stations, and if it hasn't disclosed this material fact, that "reflect[s] on the truth and accuracy of SpaceX's statements." Dish Network said SpaceX hasn't provided an equivalent power flux density (EPFD) analysis to show its 12 GHz band NGSO fixed satellite service operations won't interfere with standard DBS reference antennas. DirecTV parent AT&T said the FCC should make SpaceX show compliance with globally recognized EPFD limits before it starts operations and impose appropriate license conditions to ensure continuing compliance with DBS interference protection requirements. Noting opposition came from many, Kepler said the modification is introducing "a plethora of problems to the physical and frequency interference environments" and approval must be conditioned on protecting existing operators in close physical proximity. SpaceX says much opposition was from "competitors whose deployment lags behind that of SpaceX," and they "raise no genuine issues of space safety or interference concerns, but rather rely on competitive gamesmanship."

SpaceX CEO Elon Musk told FCC Chairman Ajit Pai of concerns (see 2008030005) about a MVDDS 5G Coalition request to remove non-geostationary orbit satellite operations from the 12 GHz band so multichannel video and data distribution service licensees can get new rights. The agency not OK'ing that petition and allowing NGSO operations "proved correct and has been a major success for the Commission," SpaceX said. As the satellite firm is rolling out its service, "the MVDDS licensees are attempting to resurrect their stale 2016 Petition," the company said Musk and others told Pai and an aide. Some company representatives also spoke with an aide to Commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel, it reported in a filing posted Friday in RM-11768. "SpaceX cannot simply move to other bands as it has already deployed an expansive network that depends on this band to deliver broadband to consumers." The coalition and backers wanting the regulator to allow two-way mobile services in the Ku band "ignore and/or attempt to minimize the fact that such services are fundamentally incompatible with" direct broadcast satellite, AT&T said. "Operation of terrestrial, two-way mobile service (or otherwise permitting higher-power terrestrial operations) in this satellite band would create an untenable interference environment for DBS subscribers." Dish Network, involved with the MVDDS 5G Coalition, declined to comment.

BAE joined the GPS Innovation Alliance, the group said Thursday.

Aviation interests urge the FCC eighth floor grant their reconsideration petitions and NTIA's request for stay of the commission's Ligado approval (see 2007270061), with a docket 12-340 posting Thursday on a call with an aide to Chairman Ajit Pai. Aerospace Industries Association and Aviation Spectrum Resources participated.

The next few years will see a big shift from land mobile satcom focusing on narrowband devices such as handheld phones to broadband use cases, blogged Northern Sky Research analyst Alan Crisp Tuesday. Operators will need to look to a wider array of ground terminals to play in that broadband land mobile marketplace, he said. "A business model selling handhelds won’t cut it anymore," and offering flat panel and roof-mounted antennas and "backpackable connectivity must become the norm," he said.