The US proposed new multimedia communications satellite systems

Abstract

The United States Federal Communications Commission (FCC), in response to industry pressure, has conducted four Notice of Proposed Rule Making (NPRM) sessions in which companies could apply for licenses for satellite systems operating at new frequencies (Ka- or Q/V-band) or in new, non-geostationary orbits at Ku-band. Nearly all of the systems proposed are intended to serve small offices and consumers by providing broadband services such as multimedia distribution and Internet access. The proposed global systems are reviewed, and the technical approaches taken to provide this type of service at low cost to the user are discussed. Almost all the designs are intended to work with small, inexpensive customer terminals and provide considerable rain-fade margin. While some designers favor low-Earth, or medium-Earth orbits for the shorter round-trip delay times they offer, the majority favor geostationary satellites, which allow for an incremental growth of the network. Fielding any of the global systems entails significant technical challenges and a large degree of business risk.