Spectrum Frontiers 'Good for 5G, Satellite Industry,' ViaSat CEO Says

The FCC spectrum frontiers order setting up rules for shared use of 28 GHz is "good for 5G and for the satellite industry," ViaSat CEO Mark Dankberg said in the company's fiscal Q1 earnings call Wednesday. The July order (see 1607140052) accommodated the grandfathering of teleport gateways for existing satellite systems, including ViaSat's ViaSat-1 and ViaSat-2 and provisioned "for many thousands of new gateways" for ViaSat-3 and others that use the 28 GHz bands, he said. The order acknowledged the need for more study of interference from 5G use of the 28 GHz band, "so I think we believe that there is a framework in place for a good outcome, but there's still a lot of work to be done," he said. Dankberg said ViaSat-2 construction and integration is largely done and the satellite is in the midst of environmental test screening. Chief Financial Officer Shawn Duffy said the company's capital expenditures were up $55 million in the quarter due to spending on ViaSat-2 and related ground segments ahead of the expected launch at year's end, and due to the two ViaSat-3 satellites under construction. Revenue rose 5 percent to $363.1 million in the quarter ended June 30 from the year-ago period, though net income fell 29 percent to $1.9 million, the company said in a news release. It said new contract awards rose 10 percent.