By Emmanuel Oluebube, Bureau Chief, UK

Ofcom has  published three documents which aim to enable more spectrum access for the growing satellite connectivity sector in the UK.

Satellite operators offer a range of broadband services in the UK, such as helping to better connect homes and businesses in hard-to-reach rural areas, as well as on trains, in the air and at sea.

We are also proposing to make more 28 GHz spectrum available for use by fixed links.

Increasing satellite and fixed link use of the 27.5-30 GHz band

In our decision and further proposals on the 27.5-30 GHz (‘28 GHz’) band we:

set out our decision, following consultation, to make 560 MHz more spectrum available for use by earth station gateways, which are large dishes on the ground that connect a satellite network to the internet;

propose to introduce a new mechanism to enable satellite gateway access to the whole band, subject to consultation processes to avoid material impacts on incumbent Spectrum Access licensees;

propose to enable some additional spectrum access for satellite land terminals – the dishes and antennas used by customers to connect to a satellite network – and fixed links; and

seek views on demand for unused 28 GHz spectrum blocks in London and Northern Ireland.

We are inviting feedback on the proposals by 31 May 2024, and plan to publish our decision later this year.

Potential for spectrum in the Q, V, E bands to be used for satellite gateways

We are also inviting input on the possibility of making spectrum in the Q and V bands (37.5-43.5 GHz, 47.2-50.2 GHz and 50.4-52.4 GHz), and E band (71-76 GHz and 81-86 GHz) available for satellite gateway earth stations.

This is something which satellite operators who responded to our 2022 Space Spectrum Strategy consultation said will be important to enable future services. We are seeking views by 14 June 2024 and plan to set out our next steps later this year.

Kepler application for NGSO network licence

Finally, Ofcom is proposing to grant an earth station network licence to Kepler for its constellation of non-geostationary orbiting (NGSO) satellites.

Ofcom has received an application from Kepler to cover its use of terminals – which can be on a building, in the air or at sea.

Kepler already has 15 satellites in orbit and plans to launch a total of 140 satellites. It says it will use its network to support a host of applications, from store and forward-based IoT services to real-time data transfer services when the network reaches full deployment.

We are inviting comments on Kepler’s application, and on our proposal to grant the licence, by 29 April 2024. We will take into account all responses to this consultation before reaching a final decision.