OneWeb receives initial regulatory
approvals for Australian operations
OneWeb, the company behind a proposed global constellation of 700 satellites in lowearth orbit, has obtained the initial approvals from the Australian Communications and Media Authority that will allow it to operate in Australia.
Following an amendment included in the Federal Register of Legislation, the company is now the 16th satellite operator listed on schedule one of the Radiocommunications (Foreign Space Objects) Determination – the first step in obtaining a licence to operate in Australia.
The company's application to the ACMA was made through an associate entity called Network Access Associates out of London in the UK. Now that it has been included in the determination, OneWeb is able to apply for a radiocommunication apparatus licence that authorises communications between space stations and earth stations in various frequency bands.
The move also facilitates the ACMA considering applications to issue licences for such services. In an earlier letter to support its application, OneWeb said: “This is a critical step towards the involvement of OneWeb in the Australian market for the provision of high quality and low latency broadband satellite services to rural and remote areas, as well as enterprise and government broadband applications.”
INTERFERENCE ISSUES: While the recent consultation around OneWeb's inclusion did not attract any attention from rival commercial operators, it did elicit a warning from the Department of Defence over potential interference issues. David Murray, director of the Defence Spectrum Office, said that looking at compatibility with existing services was particularly important as the number and complexity of satellite constellations rapidly increases. According to the ACMA, the issues raised by Defence will be considered in an upcoming review of space licensing procedures.
“As outlined in the ACMA’s Five-year spectrum outlook 2017−21, one of the purposes of the review is to consider whether, in light of trends in spaced-based communications systems, licensing procedures are appropriate and commensurate with the risk of interference,” the regulator said. The Defence submission to ACMA had pointed out that the OneWeb constellation makes use of “novel techniques” that attempt to avoid interference from LEO satellites to GEO satellites.
“One technique is Progressive Pitch, whereby a OneWeb LEO satellite would be programmed to blank transmissions as it passes through the path of GEO satellites. It should be noted that Defence has several satellite networks that have inclinations as high as 8 degrees. Current and future GSO satellite networks, with high inclination, require protection under Article 22.2 of the Radio Regulations,” Murray noted. He also pointed out the potential use of “reverse-banding”, where the conventional uplink frequencies are used for downlinks and vice-versa. Defence suggested that this is likely to require additional interference mitigation measures for earth stations.
GLOBAL APPEAL: OneWeb's initial investors include Airbus, Japan's Softbank, Qualcomm and Richard Branson's Virgin Group. It was founded by Greg Wyler, who's earlier ventures included starting the O3b network of medium-earth orbit satellites now owned by SES, while its board includes Richard Branson, Qualcomm chairman Paul Jacobs, Airbus CEO Thomas Enders and Bharti Enterprises founder and chairman Sunil Bharti. It is one of a group of companies that have proposed large constellations of low-earth orbit satellites to provide ubiquitous global coverage, but also the most advanced in terms of deployment.
In June this year it received unanimous backing from the Federal Communications Commission to enter the US market. It has also set up a joint venture with Airbus called OneWeb Satellites that will manufacture low-cost satellites at high-volumes. It plans to produce up to 15 satellites per week by pioneering large volume spacecraft production. The first launch of an initial 10 production satellites is slated for May next year, with a full launch campaign expected to start six months later, culminating in broadband access in 2019. It claims it will offer 7 Tbps of new global capacity and gigabit speeds to users and schools.
GROUND EQUIPMENT CONTRACT: This week the company announced that it had signed a US$190 million contract with Hughes Network Systems for the production of a ground network system. The contract builds on the original system development agreement between the companies signed in June 2015, bringing the total value of both to over US$300M. It includes production of the gateway sites each with multiple tracking satellite access points to support operation and handoff of high-speed user traffic between satellites.
“The start of production of the ground system is a major step towards fulfilling OneWeb's goal of bridging the digital divide, leaving no one behind,” said Wyler. The current agreement includes equipment to support multiple satellite access points in gateway locations around the world, each including a custom switching complex, outdoor modems, and power amplifiers. Shipments are expected to begin in mid-2018. Geoff Long, Commsday
OneWeb, the company behind a proposed global constellation of 700 satellites in lowearth orbit, has obtained the initial approvals from the Australian Communications and Media Authority that will allow it to operate in Australia.
Following an amendment included in the Federal Register of Legislation, the company is now the 16th satellite operator listed on schedule one of the Radiocommunications (Foreign Space Objects) Determination – the first step in obtaining a licence to operate in Australia.
The company's application to the ACMA was made through an associate entity called Network Access Associates out of London in the UK. Now that it has been included in the determination, OneWeb is able to apply for a radiocommunication apparatus licence that authorises communications between space stations and earth stations in various frequency bands.
The move also facilitates the ACMA considering applications to issue licences for such services. In an earlier letter to support its application, OneWeb said: “This is a critical step towards the involvement of OneWeb in the Australian market for the provision of high quality and low latency broadband satellite services to rural and remote areas, as well as enterprise and government broadband applications.”
INTERFERENCE ISSUES: While the recent consultation around OneWeb's inclusion did not attract any attention from rival commercial operators, it did elicit a warning from the Department of Defence over potential interference issues. David Murray, director of the Defence Spectrum Office, said that looking at compatibility with existing services was particularly important as the number and complexity of satellite constellations rapidly increases. According to the ACMA, the issues raised by Defence will be considered in an upcoming review of space licensing procedures.
“As outlined in the ACMA’s Five-year spectrum outlook 2017−21, one of the purposes of the review is to consider whether, in light of trends in spaced-based communications systems, licensing procedures are appropriate and commensurate with the risk of interference,” the regulator said. The Defence submission to ACMA had pointed out that the OneWeb constellation makes use of “novel techniques” that attempt to avoid interference from LEO satellites to GEO satellites.
“One technique is Progressive Pitch, whereby a OneWeb LEO satellite would be programmed to blank transmissions as it passes through the path of GEO satellites. It should be noted that Defence has several satellite networks that have inclinations as high as 8 degrees. Current and future GSO satellite networks, with high inclination, require protection under Article 22.2 of the Radio Regulations,” Murray noted. He also pointed out the potential use of “reverse-banding”, where the conventional uplink frequencies are used for downlinks and vice-versa. Defence suggested that this is likely to require additional interference mitigation measures for earth stations.
GLOBAL APPEAL: OneWeb's initial investors include Airbus, Japan's Softbank, Qualcomm and Richard Branson's Virgin Group. It was founded by Greg Wyler, who's earlier ventures included starting the O3b network of medium-earth orbit satellites now owned by SES, while its board includes Richard Branson, Qualcomm chairman Paul Jacobs, Airbus CEO Thomas Enders and Bharti Enterprises founder and chairman Sunil Bharti. It is one of a group of companies that have proposed large constellations of low-earth orbit satellites to provide ubiquitous global coverage, but also the most advanced in terms of deployment.
In June this year it received unanimous backing from the Federal Communications Commission to enter the US market. It has also set up a joint venture with Airbus called OneWeb Satellites that will manufacture low-cost satellites at high-volumes. It plans to produce up to 15 satellites per week by pioneering large volume spacecraft production. The first launch of an initial 10 production satellites is slated for May next year, with a full launch campaign expected to start six months later, culminating in broadband access in 2019. It claims it will offer 7 Tbps of new global capacity and gigabit speeds to users and schools.
GROUND EQUIPMENT CONTRACT: This week the company announced that it had signed a US$190 million contract with Hughes Network Systems for the production of a ground network system. The contract builds on the original system development agreement between the companies signed in June 2015, bringing the total value of both to over US$300M. It includes production of the gateway sites each with multiple tracking satellite access points to support operation and handoff of high-speed user traffic between satellites.
“The start of production of the ground system is a major step towards fulfilling OneWeb's goal of bridging the digital divide, leaving no one behind,” said Wyler. The current agreement includes equipment to support multiple satellite access points in gateway locations around the world, each including a custom switching complex, outdoor modems, and power amplifiers. Shipments are expected to begin in mid-2018. Geoff Long, Commsday
