Satellite Communications and Spectrum Efficiency

Phillip L. SpectorExecutive Vice President, Business Development, & General Counsel

ITU Telecom World 2009Geneva, Switzerland7 October 2009

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Intelsat: Global Leader in Satellite Communications

• Leading provider of fixed-satellite services (“FSS”)

– Approximately 1,800 customers

– More than 200 countries

• Resilient and flexible communications network

– 51 satellites

– 8 strategically-located teleports

– More than 28,000 miles of leased fiber connectivity

• Robust fleet investment program

– 11 satellites currently in development

Intelsat’s Operations Headquarters, Washington, D.C.

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Satellite Applications Help Achieve Government Policy Goals and Business Objectives …

Intelsat’s applications increase teledensity rates, provide distance education and telemedicine, provide broadband to rural areas, and more

Intelsat’s applications increase teledensity rates, provide distance education and telemedicine, provide broadband to rural areas, and more

Mobile Video

Corporate Networks

VoIP

Disaster Preparedness

Wireless Extension Services

IPTV

Telemedicine

Internet Connectivity

Maritime Communications

Distance Education

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… because of the Unparalleled Benefits We Provide to Our Customers

• Available everywhere: ideal for simultaneous distribution of bandwidth-intensive information;

• Versatile: support all of today's communications needs;

• Reliable: constant and uniform quality of service to hundreds of locations, regardless of geography;

• Fast: rapid, inexpensive network roll-out to hundreds or thousands of locations;

• Flexible: can complement, augment or extend any communications network, without terrestrial limitations;

• Expandable: Intelsat’s satellite / hybrid networks are easily scalable as service needs grow.

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• Where there are inadequate terrestrial facilities to connect base stations to the Internet backbone;

• In rural and less densely populated communities;

• To expand the network reach of terrestrial wireless access systems

• Similar to how cellular operators use satellites to connect to their base station towers.

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WiMAX Repeaters

Gateway to the Internet

Internet

Satellites Technology Helps Increase Teledensity Rates and Enables Rural Broadband:

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Satellites Use Spectrum Efficiently

• Satellites provide national, regional and global coverage that is unmatched by other technologies.

• One satellite (DTH) can serve millions of users with a single transmission.

• Geostationary satellites reuse spectrum in 2 degree (or less) increments.

• Satellites provide services where other technologies can’t or won’t: Disaster recovery, rural and remote areas, inhospitable terrain.

• Network efficiency optimization (carrier on carrier, DVB-S2) -- new modulation schemes are increasing the amount of data satellites can carry.

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Frequency Reuse – 2 Degree (or less) Spacing

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Spectrum Efficiency Brings Higher Susceptibility to Interference

• Reduced orbital separation and greater satellite deployments increase adjacent satellite interference.

• New modulation techniques that increase throughput are more sensitive to interference.

• Deployment of smaller satellite dishes that enable greater use of satellites provide less interference protection.

• Sharing with fixed terrestrial services further adds to the interference environment.

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Concerns About Spectrum Use and Management

• Terrestrial Wireless Access Systems (BWA, FWA, WiMAX, etc) are moving into the C-band, traditionally used by fixed satellite services.

• Cases of harmful interference are increasing.

• Extent of satellite usage is understated, because virtually all receive-only earth stations are unregistered.

• As terrestrial services are moving from fixed to mobile systems, protection of earth stations is getting more difficult.

• Sharing between terrestrial wireless access systems and satellite receiver stations imposes undue constraints on all operators and is NOT realistic.

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Spectrum Management Principles Are a Tool to Support Policy Goals

• Satellite services’ quality and reliability only can be maintained without harmful interference.

• Examine services for “compatibility” before allocating them to the same spectrum.

• Keep in mind the special nature and advantages of satellite services when making spectrum allocations.

– Establishment of national and international protection criteria;

– Protection of receive-only earth stations;

– Interference mitigation not just from in-band, but also out-of-band services.

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The Role of Satellite in Reaching the Next Billion

Cellular Backhaul eLearning

Mobile Video Networks Disaster Recovery

Internet Trunking

Telemedicine