Countries Bar Formal ITU Talks on Protecting Intelsat Orbital Slots, Assignments

ITU member countries sidestepped jurisdictional troubles by tentatively agreeing to take no action beyond discussing further the idea of labeling Intelsat orbital slots and frequency assignments seen as crucial for broadband in remote regions and developing countries. Most countries whose representatives spoke in meetings at the ITU policy setting conference said the International Telecommunications Satellite Organization is already working on better protecting the resources. An African group of countries belonging to ITSO wants a proposal on the matter floated at the 2012 World Radiocommunication Conference, Zambia said on behalf of the group. A tentative compromise proposal emerged to continue dialogue between countries, the ITU secretary general and in ITU-R, but no decision has been made on that.

One possible result of the African proposal would be a two-tiered system of satellite orbit and spectrum frequency registration: one for the common heritage resources, the other for everything else. Common heritage means frequency assignments associated with orbital locations in the process of advanced publication, coordination or registered by Intelsat when the International Telecommunications Satellite Organization was formed about 10 years ago, the ITSO website said.

The mixing and lack of distinction between C-, Ku- and Ka-bands with other U.K. and U.S. assignments means maintenance of global connectivity and services to certain vulnerable countries has been jeopardized, the Uganda Communications Commission said in a 2009 letter to ITU. The proposed changes would likely have consequences for coordination of satellite networks, changes to the Radio Regulations and rules of procedure.

Uniquely identifying and protecting satellite orbital slots and associated frequency spectrum used by Intelsat to deliver international public telecom services is important to the African region, said Zambia on behalf of an African regional proposal supporting the idea. “Very many” ITU member governments share the concern over protecting the resources, Zambia said, and have said so at the ITSO’s assembly of parties meetings. The unique resources can be used to spur broadband in remote areas, Zambia said. Member governments involved in Intelsat’s privatization called the resources “the common heritage,” Zambia said. The governments entrusted oversight of the resources to the U.S. and U.K. as notifying administrations, officials said.

An African regional proposal submitted by Cameroon, Guinea, Kenya, Libya, Rwanda and Zambia urged the ITU to take all the necessary measures to identify and “label” the orbital locations and associated frequency assignments in the master register and to take measures to protect them.

It’s a jurisdictional issue, the U.S. said. ITSO and ITU are independent international organizations, the U.S. said, and the status of the common heritage was settled by a full consensus at the ITSO assembly of parties in 2000. The ITU Radio Regulations Board has indicated that the issue is for the U.S. and U.K. to address, the U.S. said. ITSO and the two notifying administrations should address the matter, the U.S. said.

The last ITSO assembly of parties meeting agreed that the matter would be raised with the U.S., the U.K. and the ITU, prompting the African proposal, Zambia said on behalf of the group. An African region ministerial policy-setting meeting agreed to bring the matter to the ITU, Zambia said. Also, ITSO doesn’t deal with ITU’s work on spectrum management, Zambia said.

If ITSO could have resolved the problem, it wouldn’t be on the floor at an ITU conference, Senegal said. ITSO member countries have met four times on the matter, but nothing has moved forward, Senegal said. Landlocked countries are especially dependent on satellite communications, Uganda said. The matter is within the ITU’s mandate, Uganda said.

The issue shouldn’t be discussed at ITU, because it’s being discussed at ITSO, the Netherlands said. “Intervention” by a WRC or ITU policy-setting conference in only Intelsat’s registrations “would set an unwanted precedent,” the Netherlands said. The country “is a bit concerned” about labeling one organization’s slots and frequencies with the aim of giving them a different status, the delegate said.

Countries opposing ITU’s involvement in the matter include the U.K., Spain, Denmark, Russia, Norway, New Zealand, Canada, Madagascar, and the United Arab Emirates. The African proposal “is not solid enough” for a decision by an ITU policy-setting conference, the UAE said. The satellite filing process is “well known,” New Zealand said, and has been developed over time. France said protecting the common heritage is important, but ITSO decisions to protect it haven’t been fully implemented.