for a legitimate cause because C-band
is very important for the satellite industry which has been around for several
decades and will be around for generations to come. The satellite industry achieved what I would call the best
possible outcome at WRC-07.”
Such a decisive victory also was
important in terms of future spectrum
battles, says Hartshorn. “Much has been
said about the consequences for the
satellite industry had WRC not been as
successful as it was,” he says. “I would
simply add that this battle was not just
about C-band; it was about the viability
and role of satellite communications in
general and, to that extent, the future
of all satellite spectrum hung in the balance: L, X, Ku, Ka, S. You name it. Had
we lost the C-band battle, other satcom
bands would have been seen as soft targets by terrestrial interests.”
What Happens Now?
Despite the overall consensus that the
industry achieved the best possible
outcome, some still remain cautious,
pointing out that the decision allows
some wiggle room for countries. “The
threat has not been totally allayed yet.
The footnotes provide special provisions
for controlled IMT deployment in several
countries,” says Robert Ames, CEO of the
Satellite Users Interference Reduction
Group (SUIRG). “I am not sure we can
call this a winning situation but more of
a global draw. While the results within
the [United States] were very positive,
this is a global situation, and globally
not all countries did as well.”
Gude agrees that while the potential threat has been averted, the satellite
industry will need to remain on top of
the issue. “The ITU process did not, and
really could not, tell them that they are
not allowed to deploy in this band,” he
says. “What it told them was that this was
not an easy band to deploy in. Globally
speaking, the message from the ITU was
that this was not a band worth harmonizing. What we have seen is that you will
have an effort from individual countries
to explore deploying in portions of the
band, particularly the lower portions of
the band. So I think it goes from an international regulatory setting to a domestic
regulatory setting in individual countries
around the world.”
Simple demand for bandwidth most
likely means there will be some countries that try to implement IMT services
via C-band, but those efforts will be difficult, officials says. “As long as fixed and
mobile terrestrial antennas are blasting
signals at each other in the C-band, I see
no hope of satellite coexisting with terrestrial users in the same band,” says Bell.
“But there is every reason to think that
the wireless industry will be able to use
available spectrum at higher frequencies
to meet their needs and deliver the kind
of advanced services we all want. With
the resolution of this issue, they also have
new regulatory clarity that should allow
them to invest with more confidence.”
Industry Momentum
