FCC to vote to allow U.S. devices to use European navigation system

Telesat

24/10/2018 21:48

By David Shepardson
    WASHINGTON, Oct 24 (Reuters) - The U.S. Federal
Communications Commission said on Wednesday it will vote in
November to allow U.S. devices to access the European global
navigation satellite system known as Galileo, a move that could
improve the services Americans use.
    Galileo is a 10-billion-euro ($11.40-billion) satellite
program being developed by the European Union as a rival to the
U.S. Global Positioning System (GPS) that launched initial
services in late 2016.
     FCC Chairman Ajit Pai said in a Wednesday statement that
"enabling the Galileo system to work in concert with the U.S.
GPS constellation should make GPS more precise, reliable and
resilient for American consumers and businesses alike ."
    The FCC is proposing to waive its licensing requirements for
non-federal operations with Galileo signals known as E1 and E5,
subject to certain technical constraints, officials said. 
    The FCC includes conditions to ensure users of
satellite-based positioning, navigation and timing services in
the United States will benefit from Galileo signals. The systems
are interoperable under a 2004 agreement.
     Pai noted that GPS "is integral to numerous everyday
applications - ranging from driving directions to precision
farming."
    The EU has had to rely on Russian or U.S. GPS signals.
    Europe in July launched four more Galileo satellites, taking
the number in orbit to 26 and moving a step closer to having its
own navigation system.
    The Galileo system aims to have a total of 30 satellites by
2020. The EU aims to use Galileo to tap into the global market
for satellite navigation services, the market for which it
estimates will be worth 250 billion euros by 2022.
    The EU, which first decided 17 years ago to move ahead with
Galileo, has suffered some setbacks - including delays,
financing problems and two satellites being put into the wrong
orbit.
    In August, Britain said it would start work on an
alternative satellite system to Galileo.
    Pai also said the FCC will vote in November to allow
companies, like Tesla Inc  TSLA.O  CEO Elon Musk's SpaceX and
TeleSat Canada  PSPENC.UL , to expand the frequencies they can
use so "that their fleets of low Earth orbit satellites can
offer even better broadband service."
    In March, the FCC approved an application by SpaceX to
provide broadband services using satellites at home and abroad
and previously approved a similar request by Telesat, which is
principally owned by Canada’s Public Sector Pension Investment
Board and Loral Space & Communications Inc  LORL.O .
    Pai also is proposing the first comprehensive review of the
FCC's orbital debris rules since their adoption in 2004 to
address the "growing risk" to satellites from the rising amount
of space junk. 
 ($1 = 0.8774 euro)

 (Reporting by David Shepardson, editing by G Crosse)
 ((David.Shepardson@thomsonreuters.com; +1-202-898-8324))