Dish Asks for Dual-Mode, Spare Satellite Waivers in TerreStar Transfer Application

Dish Network asked the FCC to waive integrated service rules in its purchase of S-band mobile satellite service/ancillary terrestrial component licensees TerreStar and DBSD. The request made Monday was part of Dish’s application to transfer TerreStar’s FCC licenses to Dish. Dish asked the FCC to combine its Monday filing with a previously filed application for DBSD’s licenses (CD April 12 p7). Dish is in the process of buying the MSS companies out of bankruptcy, which would give Dish 40 MHz of spectrum currently allocated for MSS/ATC use. The spectrum is also part of the 300 MHz identified in the National Broadband Plan as spectrum that could be available for broadband use within the next five years.

The integrated service rules require MSS/ATC licensees to provide satellite connectivity in all devices using the spectrum, including devices that can also provide terrestrial service. The FCC International Bureau (IB) should waive the requirement for “customers who do not require the satellite function,” the filing said. “The regulatory flexibility we are seeking is consistent with FCC precedent while benefiting consumers by providing greater choice and broader service coverage,” said Dish Executive Vice President Tom Cullen.

Such a waiver has faced intense scrutiny since January, when the IB granted a conditional waiver to LightSquared that would allow it to offer some terrestrial-only service in the L-band. That decision has faced the ire of wireless providers, lawmakers and GPS interests. Dish notes that its “plan will not raise the technical issues that have hampered the use of the MSS L-band, such as the interleaving of the operators’ assignments and the severe interference claimed by systems operating in adjacent spectrum.”

Dish is planning to deploy an MSS/ATC system using the S-band spectrum and DBSD’s and TerreStar’s satellites, said Dish. The broadband services “will be offered over a single, technically integrated network for all satellite and terrestrial traffic” and could include mobile, portable or fixed broadband services, said Dish. Dish “anticipates offering broadband services both on a stand-alone basis and in a consumer-friendly bundle with its multichannel video services,” it said. The deals are a big step “in obtaining spectrum necessary to establish Dish as a viable provider of mobile broadband service,” it said. Dish plans to use the LTE Advanced standard from the outset, it said. A Dish subsidiary already owns licenses to 6 MHz of 700 MHz spectrum in 170 markets.

Dish also asked for a waiver of the spare satellite rule that requires MSS/ATC operators to have a spare satellite on the ground one year after beginning ATC services. The MSS operators’ satellites are unlikely to fail in the near future and the requirement would only divert funds from developing the MSS/ATC network, said Dish. Dish also asked the FCC to harmonize ATC service rules in the 2 GHz band through technical requirement waivers.

If the waivers are granted, Dish will agree to “substantial terrestrial network deployment commitments intended to increase wireless broadband competition, including in rural areas,” it said. “The requested flexibility is, in fact, critical to Dish’s ability to obtain base station equipment and handsets” because manufacturers may not be willing to develop the necessary devices in the S-band without the certainty of regulatory approvals, it said. Dish also said it would ensure sufficient satellite capacity to support a nationwide MSS offering if the agency grants the waivers.

The transactions won’t hurt the competitive landscape for the MSS or MSS/ATC industries, said Dish. Neither Dish nor DBSD currently provide MSS and TerreStar’s offerings are still in the early stages, Dish said. MSS/ATC services are yet to materialize and the transaction won’t reduce the number of MSS/ATC choices, it said.