Doug Lung / 10.25.2012 09:35AM
FCC Satellite Division Settles Spectrum Five and Dish Issues at 119 degrees WL
Spectrum Five LLC had opposed Dish Operating LLC's request
to modify Dish's license for EchoStar 7 to specify operations
at 118.8 degrees west longitude (WL) instead of 118.9 degrees WL. Spectrum Five
requested a declaratory ruling allowing it to serve the U.S. market with a
proposed Broadcast Satellite Service (BSS) space station at 119.25 degrees WL,
very close to EchoStar 7.
Last week the FCC International Bureau's Satellite Division
issued a Declaratory
Ruling (DA 12-1671) allowing Spectrum Five U.S. market access
from 119.25 degrees WL using 17.3-17.7 GHz (space-to-Earth) and 24.75-25.25 GHz
(Earth-to-space).
In a Memorandum
Opinion and Order (DA 12-1670) released the same day, the FCC
granted Dish Operating LLC's request to use 118.8 degrees WL for EchoStar 7 and
denied, in part, and dismissed, in part, as moot, Petitions to Dismiss or Deny
the applications filed by Spectrum Five. The Satellite Division found “allowing
DISH to operate the EchoStar 7 Direct Broadcast Satellite (DBS) service space station at the 118.8
degrees W.L. orbital location will not cause impermissible interference to
other radiocommunication systems, and will serve the public interest.” DBS
satellites use 12.2-12.7 GHz (space-to-Earth) and 17.3-17.8 GHz
(Earth-to-space).Note that Spectrum
Five is now allowed to serve the U.S. using 17.3-17.7 GHz (space-to-Earth) from
a location less than half a degree away.
The Memorandum Opinion and Order says, “Spectrum Five
indicated that DISH’s application consequently did not adequately consider
potential negative impacts to Spectrum Five (1) due to physical co-location of
EchoStar 7 with Spectrum Five’s proposed 17/24 GHz BSS satellite at the 118.8°
W.L. orbital location,8 and (2) due to increased interference to Spectrum
Five’s proposed BSS satellites at the 114.5° W.L. orbital location.”
In granting
Dish's application, the FCC considered Dish's orbital debris mitigation plan.
Operation of EchoStar 7 at 118.8 degrees WL requires modification of the Appendix
30 Region 2 Broadcasting Satellite Service Plan and associated Appendix 30A
Region 2 feeder-link plan. DishOperating LLC will be held responsible for all cost recovery fees
associated with these ITU filings.The
FCC cautions, “No protection from interference caused by radio stations
authorized by other Administrations is guaranteed until the agreement of all
affected Administrations is obtained and the frequency assignment becomes a
part of the appropriate Region 2 BSS and feeder-link Plans. If coordination has
not been completed and/or for which the necessary agreements under Appendices
30 and 30A have not been obtained, this license may be subject to additional
terms and conditions as required to effect coordination or obtain the agreement
of other Administrations.”