The US Senate has confirmed outgoing President Trump’s nomination of Nathan Simington to a seat on the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). Simington’s nomination followed Trump’s withdrawal of sitting member Michael O’Rielly’s candidacy shortly after the cancellation of his second confirmation hearing before Senate having reportedly expressed reservations about the President’s attempt to use his executive […]
SpaceX has won a portion of the US government’s scheme to provide satellite-based broadband access to rural users. The pay-out, which totals $885.5 million, is part of the FCC’s Rural Digital Opportunity Fund (RDOF). SpaceX, and other non-terrestrial suppliers, had previously complained that they were being excluded from being considered. In total the FCC has […]
Intelsat’s bankruptcy court on December 3rd said the dispute between SES Americom and Intelsat would go to trial next June. The news coincides with a 126-page filing to Intelsat’s court from SES which pulls no punches in its claims. At the heart of the legal dispute between SES and Intelsat is an argument over Intelsat’s […]
Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai has announced his intention to leave the Commission on January 20, 2021, coinciding with the incumbency of President-Elect Biden. “It has been the honor of a lifetime to serve at the Federal Communications Commission, including as Chairman of the FCC over the past four years,” said Pai in a […]
Next week sees the start of the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) auction of satellite C-band spectrum in the US. Satellite operators are in the process of clearing a total of 280 MHz of spectrum in the C-band (3.7-3.98 GHz) for repurposing for 5G use. Most observers expect the auction to generate billions of dollars to […]
The FCC used Thanksgiving Eve to tell Charlie Ergen that his Dish Network had improperly received $3.3 billion in 5G licence fee discounts back in 2015. The 25 per cent fee discounts were tapped by Dish Network because Ergen’s team had claimed – successfully at the time – that it was a “designated entity” as […]
UK-based mega-constellation satellite operator OneWeb has received various US government approvals for it to exit its Chapter 11 bankruptcy. The approvals include the FCC which sanctioned the purchase by the UK government and Bharti Global this week. The FCC’s decision came in the form of an ‘Order’ on October 26th which gave permission for OneWeb […]
The Federal Communications Commission has amended its rules governing unlicensed wireless services provided over spectrum in the television broadcasting bands – the so-called TV White Spaces (TVWS). The amended rules will allow for expanded use of this spectrum for the delivery of broadband services in rural and underserved communities while protecting broadcast television stations and […]
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has announced that 386 applicants are qualified to bid in the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund Phase I auction. Phase 1 of the auction opens October 29th. In a Public Notice, the Rural Broadband Auctions Task Force, Office of Economics and Analytics, and Wireline Competition Bureau identified the qualified applicants and […]
Earth station operators in the US as well as cable and IP head-ends which have equipment pointing towards SES Americom satellites must decide this by October 14th if they want to self-install the necessary equipment and realign dishes for the new C-band signals. The FCC has identified around 6000 registered/licensed C-band users in the US […]