Part 25 Satellite Rules Overhaul Needs Amending, SES Says

The Part 25 satellite rules changes the FCC ordered in December (see 1512170036) need clarification or correction regarding U.S. market access requests, SES said in a petition for reconsideration Tuesday in docket 12-267. The FCC's decision to defer processing of a U.S. market access request deemed mutually exclusive with a prior filing by a U.S. licensee conflicts with agency precedent and lets a U.S. filer block a foreign satellite licensee from starting service for U.S. customers, SES said. If the foreign licensee has ITU priority, the U.S. filer might not be able to provide service even if gets licensed, SES said. The company said holding U.S. market requests in abeyance pending resolution of the two-step U.S. licensing process "is all the more puzzling" since FCC precedent determined that granting a U.S. license doesn't preclude granting market access to a foreign licensee with ITU priority. Instead, SES said, the FCC should consider U.S. market access requests as they're received, regardless of whether a potentially conflicting U.S. filing has been submitted. At the very least, it said, the FCC should make a parallel process where a foreign licensee can get queue priority.