SpaceX's application for review seeking to have the authorization for Amazon's Kuiper be amended to include conditions on second-generation Starlinks (see 2302240027) raises arguments the FCC already addressed and rejected in the Kuiper orbital debris modification order, Amazon told the International Bureau Wednesday. The application gives no reason "to reverse those well-founded conclusions," it said. Kuiper and SpaceX aren't similarly situated in relevant ways, it said. The object-years condition imposed on SpaceX reflected the thousands of satellites it has in orbit, while Kuiper "has no comparable number," it said. The second-gen licensing was in tranches to monitor operational issues given SpaceX's "unprecedentedly large request," while Kuiper is a tenth the size and in line with previous FCC authorizations where there was no such limit, it said.

To show its second-generation satellite constellation would meet ITU power limits, SpaceX arbitrarily shrank the exclusion zones protecting geostationary satellites, Dish Network told the FCC International Bureau this week. It said it came to that conclusion after analyzing the equivalent power flux density data files provided by SpaceX. It said SpaceX's exclusion zones violate ITU rules and go against the company's own representations to the FCC. Rather than making a noncompliant submission to the ITU, the FCC shouldn't forward the files, Dish said. Either that or forward them but advise the ITU that the exclusion zone is inaccurate, it said. Dish said the FCC also should ask SpaceX to produce documentation about its exclusion zone decision because it "may prove what is already apparent -- that this was a trial-and-error exercise aimed at picking the exclusion zone angle that attempts to display compliance ... based on a fallacy." SpaceX didn't comment Wednesday.

Capella Space seeks FCC OK to launch and operate its Acadia-1 and Acadia-2 low earth orbit satellites to provide earth exploration satellite service. The Acadias are its next generation of satellites, following its Capella satellites, seven of which have been deployed, it said in an International Bureau application Tuesday. Capella plans to launch Acadia-1 and -2 in Q2 and Q3 of this year.

The penultimate launch for OneWeb's to complete its constellation's global footprint should come Thursday, with 40 of its first-generation satellites scheduled to go up from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida aboard a SpaceX rocket, it said this week. The 40 would bring the total number of OneWeb satellites in orbit to 582.

Viasat's planned buy of Inmarsat likely won't hurt broadband inflight connectivity competition in the U.K., its Competition & Markets Authority said in a provisional finding last week. The European Commission is also investigating the deal's potential competitive effects (see 2302130038).

AST SpaceMobile and defense communications company Fairwinds Technologies are partnering on ways to market AST's planned direct-to-device satellite service to the military market, the satellite operator said Monday.

Mangata expects to have its trial network operational late this year for its planned non-geostationary orbit broadband constellation, company officials told FCC representatives per an International Bureau ex parte filing Wednesday. It said its launch, payload development and gateway development supplier contracts are signed and more than 1.5 Tbps of capacity is booked, with customers including U.S. network operators and defense contractors. Mangata said its highly elliptical orbit launches are to start in Q1 2026, with initial medium earth orbit launches to follow. It also said it has begun initial coordination with other satellite operators, and urged approval of its pending application seeking U.S. market access for the 823-satellite constellation (see 2005270010).

Viasat, Ligado and Skylo Technologies are entering the direct-to-handset service provider marketplace, with Viasat announcing Thursday a nonbinding memorandum of understanding among the three to offer service via Ligado's SkyTerra satellite network. Viasat said it and Ligado have offered a variety of mobile satellite services over SkyTerra for years, and the MOU agreement adds Skylo technology, sales and services. It said the three plan to launch commercial services this year, including smartphone messaging, wearable connectivity and IoT services across market segments including consumer smartphone, automotive and defense applications. Skylo announced this week it and Intelsat were partnering with Deutsche Telekom on a hybrid terrestrial/satellite IoT service offering to be commercially available starting in Q2.

Whether optical ground station (OGS) technology gains lasting traction in commercial markets depends on OGS value chain players tackling the many challenges of space-to-ground links, Northern Sky Research analyst Prachi Kawade blogged Thursday. NSR predicted more than 170 direct-to-earth laser communication terminals will be launched in the next decade, all requiring OGS services. It said RF will continue to dominate until OGS link availability and reliability -- which can be significantly affected by the atmosphere -- is well established. NSR said ground service providers will move toward optical ground networks applications beyond Earth, such as lunar communications.

California-based Launcher is seeking FCC International Bureau approval for launch and operation of its Orbiter SN3 orbital transfer vehicle. It said in an application Wednesday that SN3 would deploy customer payloads in non-geostationary orbit, with its launch date June 10 at the earliest.