STATEMENT OF 
COMMISSIONER GEOFFREY STARKS 

Re:  	Revising Spectrum Sharing Rules for Non-Geostationary Orbit, Fixed-Satellite Service Systems, IB Docket No. 21-456; Revision of Section 25.261 of the Commission’s Rules to Increase Certainty in Spectrum Sharing Obligations Among Non-Geostationary Orbit Fixed-Satellite Service Systems, RM-11855.

The last few years have seen a transformation of the American space sector.  So far this year, the United States has launched nearly 50 missions to place satellites in Earth orbit or deep space. Satellite imaging and sensing companies are helping governments, commercial actors and other organizations assess how our planet is experiencing conditions ranging from climate change to the spread of COVID-19.  And non-geostationary satellite orbit fixed-satellite service (NGSO FSS) systems are beginning to bridge the digital divide in the United States and around the world.

Commission policies must keep pace with these changes so we can encourage innovation while preserving a level playing field between incumbents and new entrants.  That’s why the Commission updated its NGSO rules in 2017, for the first time in more than a decade.  

Since then, the Commission has received an unprecedented number of applications for NGSO space station licenses, including NGSO FSS systems of previously unimaginable size.  These next-generation satellite systems aim to provide broadband service to the most difficult to reach Americans at latency and speeds superior to any preexisting satellite broadband options.  But because these systems must share spectrum with other satellite operators, they and other innovative NGSO systems present new challenges for our spectrum sharing policy.  

It is therefore appropriate to consider further updates to our rules to protect the significant investments reflected in these and other systems, while also preserving opportunities for new entrants and systems.  Given the rapidly changing character of this sector and the finite nature of spectrum, I am particularly interested in how we might encourage satellite operators to adopt spectrally efficient technologies that will ensure the very best and highest use of spectrum.  I’m therefore grateful to my colleagues for accepting my edits seeking comment on incorporating spectral efficiency incentives into our spectrum sharing policy.  

Thank you to the International Bureau staff for their hard work on this item.