21st Annual Global MilSatCom

SMi Group are proud to announce the 21st annual Global MilSatCom conference and exhibition will return to London on the 5th, 6th and 7th November alongside a Small Satellites and Disruptive Space Technology focus day on the 4th November.

As…

SES, Viasat say FCC’s rural broadband latency requirements unfair to satellites

Satellite operators want to participate in a newly proposed $20.4 billion rural broadband program, but say the U.S. Federal Communications Commission’s scoring criteria for signal lag puts them at a disadvantage. 

SpaceX to launch SES’s O3b mPower constellation on two Falcon 9 rockets

SpaceX received a contract to launch the first seven O3b mPower satellites using Falcon 9 rockets, the companies announced Sept. 9. 

Eutelsat: We quit the C-Band Alliance because our voice wasn’t heard

Eutelsat Chief Executive Rodolphe Belmer said his company decided last week to leave the C-Band Alliance because the group didn’t pay sufficient attention to the company’s concerns. 

Facebook, Hughes start Colombian Wi-Fi service • Ariane 6 supplier GKN Aerospace cutting 1,000 jobs 

Facebook has partnered with Hughes Network Systems to launch a satellite-enabled Wi-Fi hotspot service in Colombia.

Eutelsat leaves C-Band Alliance as spectrum decision looms

Eutelsat Communications has quit the C-Band Alliance, fracturing the group of global satellite operators as a regulatory decision on their spectrum plan nears. 

Rival plan to C-Band Alliance calls for spectrum auction, fiber switchover for satellite broadcasters

Charter, ACA Connects and the Competitive Carriers Association (CCA) on July 1 filed a counterplan with the U.S. Federal Communications Commission, urging the commission to open 370 megahertz of satellite C-band spectrum through an auction.

Soyuz launch completes first-generation O3b constellation

European launch provider Arianespace completed SES’s first-generation O3b constellation April 4 with the Soyuz launch of four satellites.

FCC: we won’t rush C-band decision

Federal Communications Commission officials urged patience with the repurposing process for satellite C-band spectrum, saying regulators are more concerned about getting it right than rushing the process.

FIRST UP Satcom | SmartSky raises $104M • SES picks Halliwell successor • Netflix tops satellite, cable in US

SmartSky has raised close to $350 million. Its network of towers across the United States is scheduled to begin commercial service later this year.

C-Band Alliance plan would require 5G networks to pay for eight new satellites

The two largest members of the C-Band Alliance would each need four new satellites in order to continue providing telecom services in the U.S. if the Federal Communications Commission accepts its C-band plan, the group said Dec. 19.

FIRST UP Satcom | ISRO launches Ku-band satellite • SpaceX raising $500 million • SES closes 400 million euro loan

The Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV) Mark 2 rocket lifted off on schedule at 5:40 a.m. Eastern and deployed the GSAT-7A satellite into a geostationary transfer orbit 19 minutes later.

C-Band Alliance members promise to buy American for new satellites under C-band plan

Members of the C-Band Alliance have stipulated that they will only buy U.S.-built satellites to replace any capacity lost through the transfer of some C-band spectrum to cellular operators for 5G, a move that could position their plan more favorably with the White House and Congress.

C-Band Alliance doubles spectrum offer to 200 megahertz

Members of the C-Band Alliance on Oct. 22 increased the amount of spectrum they are willing to part with in the United States, aligning their plan more closely with that of the Federal Communications Commission as a deadline for input looms.

ABS, Hispasat and Star One cry foul over C-Band Alliance

Three regional satellite operators with C-band coverage over the United States have complained to U.S. telecom regulators about being left out of a group led by four of the world’s largest satellite operators to arrange a proposed spectrum transfer to the wireless industry.

Arianespace assessing impact of crewed Soyuz failure on satellite-launching variant

Arianespace said Oct. 11 it’s too soon to say whether the Soyuz-ST rockets it uses to launch satellites from South America will be grounded following the failure of a Russian Soyuz-FG rocket carrying crew to the International Space Station.