The American company EchoStar announced, that has met all the necessary regulatory requirements to retain rights to global S-band spectrum, which it is selling to SpaceX as part of the deal for more than 17 billions of dollars.
The key stage was the successful completion of the “Bringing Back Into Use” procedure (BBIU), which is administered by the International Telecommunication Union (THAT) - UN structure, which controls the use of radio frequencies in the world.
Now, all operators, which use adjacent frequencies, are required to coordinate their activities with EchoStar within the limits of the Siron-1 license, covering mobile spectrum rights in the band 2 gigahertz.
SpaceX plans to use this spectrum along with the frequencies of its ground partners, including T-Mobile in the US, to have 20 times to increase the bandwidth of future direct-to-device services (D2D) — direct communication between satellites and smartphones.
The company has already applied for deployment to 15 000 modernized Starlink satellites, which will support D2D communication. The first tests are scheduled for the end 2026 year. Currently, more than 650 Starlink satellites, which provide limited D2D capabilities — text messaging, emergency notifications and support for some applications in the US, Japan and New Zealand.
According to the agreement, SpaceX will pay off EchoStar 17 billions of dollars in a combination of cash and company stock, and will also cover 2 billions of dollars in interest payments on EchoStar's debt obligations. The deal still needs approval from the US Federal Communications Commission (FCC).
Source: https://spacenews.com