The satellite industry may be economically smaller than its mobile counterpart but it is becoming increasingly important in discussions of spectrum policy. One example is the tens of thousands of new non-geostationary satellites that operators are launching to target new or underserved markets. The ITU-R Director-elect, Mario Maniewicz, told us in… Read more...

Over the past few months we have reported on the discussions about protecting earth observation services in 24 GHz against interference from 5G in 26 GHz. The latter is one of the most widely-supported 5G candidate bands under discussion at WRC-19 and has been identified as a 5G pioneer band… Read more...

This Research Note focusses on satellite agenda items in WRC-19, principally the removal of a restriction on broadcasting-satellite services and improving spectrum access for movable earth stations and non-geostationary satellites. The USA, Canada and the Asian and European regional groupings support the removal of some of broadcasting-satellite service limitations but African… Read more...

This week we reported ViaSat's criticisms of Inmarsat being allowed to deploy an in-flight broadband service in the 2 GHz spectrum reserved for EU mobile satellite services (MSS) nearly ten years ago. The pending court case will tell us if these criticisms amount to legal wrongdoing, but the real issue is… Read more...

World Radiocommunication Conference (WRC) negotiations are notorious for being complex, but this year’s inter-governmental event has exceeded expectations by remaining incomplete as of the penultimate morning. Read more...

As well as being widely acknowledged as the most important event in spectrum management, the World Radiocommunication Conference (WRC) is also widely known for its long, drawn-out negotiations that can continue well into the early hours. Read more...

Typically less than 50% of spectrum already identified for IMT has been licensed by regulators, yet the IMT community are seeking new allocations. Shouldn't regulators and the IMT community alike use what they have first, before asking for more? Read more...

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Is now the time to take a step back and re-consider not just the 700 MHz band plan, but everything from 450 to 960 MHz? Read more...

Consultations over the future use of the 3.4 to 3.8 GHz band are flourishing across Europe with a view to handing over the band to wireless broadband operators. But is the band 'not significantly used' (by satellite services) in Europe as some claim? Read more...