Federal Communications Commission
Washington, D.C. 20554
DA 09-2278
October 23, 2009
Karis A. Hastings, Esq.
Hogan & Hartson LLP 
555 Thirteenth Street, NW
Washington, DC 20004 
Re:  IBFS File No. SAT-LOA-20080910-00173 (Call Sign:  S2763)
Dear Ms. Hastings: 
This letter concerns SES Americom, Inc.’s (SES Americom) pending request to construct, launch, and 
operate a 17/24 GHz Broadcasting-Satellite Service (BSS) space station at the 67.5° W.L. orbital location 
using the 17.3-17.8 GHz (space-to-Earth) and the 24.75-25.25 GHz (Earth-to-space) frequency bands, with 
the 17.7-17.8 GHz (space-to-Earth) frequency band limited to international service only. For reasons 
discussed below, we partially dismiss the application as defective, without prejudice to refilling. 
Section 25.1121 of the Commission’s rules requires the Commission to return, as unacceptable for filing, any 
space station application that is not substantially complete, contains internal inconsistencies, or does not 
substantially comply with the Commission’s rules.  In its application, SES indicates that the space station 
will provide service to the Continental U.S. (CONUS) using a fixed antenna beam, to South America using 
two fixed antenna beams (one covering Brazil and the other covering the remainder of South America), and 
to Mexico using a steerable antenna beam.  Section 25.114(d)(3) of the Commission’s rules provides that the 
application shall include in narrative form, the “[p]redicted space station antenna gain contour(s) for each 
transmit and each receive antenna beam and nominal orbital location requested.  These contour(s) should be 
plotted on an area map at 2 dB intervals down to 10 dB below the peak value of the parameter and at 5 dB 
intervals between 10 dB and 20 dB below the peak values, with the peak value and sense of polarization 
clearly specified on each plotted contour….”2 While SES Americom provided antenna gain contours for the 
steerable Mexico transmitting and receiving beams in both polarizations, it failed to include the requisite 
number of intervals for each diagram.  Specifically, SES Americom only provided -4 dB, -10 dB, and -20 dB 
gain contours.  SES Americom did not seek a waiver of Section 25.114(d)(3) with respect to the requirement 
to provide antenna gain contour diagrams for the steerable Mexico transmitting and receiving beams and 
accordingly this aspect of its application is subject to dismissal. 3  
  
1 47 C.F.R. § 25.112.  
2 47 C.F.R. § 25.114(d)(3).  
3 We note that in its application, SES Americom requests a limited waiver of Section 25.114(d)(3) of the Commission's 
rules with respect to the submission of predicted antenna gain contours in .gxt format for the non-Brazilian South 
American uplink beams.  This waiver request does not address the steerable antenna beams covering Mexico.  Narrative 
at 4-5.
 Federal Communications Commission                                        DA 09-2278
2
Accordingly, pursuant to Section 25.112(a)(1) of the Commission’s rules, 47 C.F.R. § 25.112(a)(1), and 
Section 0.261 of the Commission’s rules on delegations of authority, 47 C.F.R. § 0.261, we partially dismiss 
the application of SES Americom with respect to the portion of its application relating to the steerable 
antenna beam without prejudice to refiling.  
Sincerely,
Robert G. Nelson
Chief, Satellite Division
International Bureau