Satellite operators SES and Eutelsat have reached a series of agreements with regard to the right to operate at the 28.5E orbital position.
The first agreement ends the arbitral procedure between the two companies that was initiated in October 2012…
Satellite operators SES and Eutelsat have reached a series of agreements with regard to the right to operate at the 28.5E orbital position.
The first agreement ends the arbitral procedure between the two companies that was initiated in October 2012 under the rules of the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) in Paris. The dispute concerned a right of use of 500MHz of Ku-band spectrum at 28.5E under a German filing.
Eutelsat had been using the frequencies following its agreement with German telecoms incumbent Deutsche Telekom back in 1999. However, the telco transferred its satellite activity, including the orbital rights, to Media Broadcast in 2002. The German media services provider subsequently signed an agreement with SES in 2005 giving the latter the right to use the frequencies effective 4 October 2013.
When it became clear that SES was to utilise these rights on that date, Eutelsat commenced arbitral proceedings against its peer. The Paris-based company cited both the 1999 agreement with Deutsche Telekom as well as an intersystem coordination agreement it had secured with SES the same year.
In the first phase of the arbitral proceedings, the ICC held that the 1999 intersystem coordination agreement did not bar SES from using the relevant frequency bands if and when Eutelsat no longer held the regulatory right to operate in them under the German filing.
To that end, following a request by Media Broadcast, the regional civil court of Bonn issued a preliminary injunction that prohibited Eutelsat from using the spectrum.
In response, Eutelsat ceased operations of the transponders on Eutelsat-28A that use the disputed frequencies on 3 October 2013.
The satellite operator had said that it planned to appeal the court’s decision, while the second phase of the tribunal was also ongoing. However, following the settlement, the dispute has now been resolved and SES will continue to operate its satellites at the location.
For its part, Eutelsat will independently commercialise part of the capacity of the previously disputed frequencies after it contracted long-term satellite capacity on the SES satellite fleet at 28.5E.
Under the agreement, Eutelsat will now lease 20 transponders from SES, 125MHz (8 transponders) from the formerly disputed 500MHz and 250MHz (12 transponders) which was not the subject of the legal proceedings. Financial details were not disclosed.
The transponders will be operated on three new satellites which SES is deploying at the 28.2/28.5E neighbourhood – Astra 2F, Astra 2E and Astra 2G – of which the first two have been launched and are operational, while the third is planned for a launch later this year.
The third agreement between the two companies addresses technical frequency coordination under the rules of the International Telecommunication Union. It will allow both parties an optimised use of their respective spectrum at a number of orbital positions over the EMEA region. It confirms and clarifies in technical terms the geographic coverage and transmission power levels for frequencies at these positions.
Commenting on the agreement, SES president and CEO Romain Bausch said: “The agreements with Eutelsat create a secure framework for operations in major broadcasting and data markets in Europe, Middle East and Africa. They are beneficial for our whole industry and, above all, for our customers and end users as they experience optimal satellite services.
“The agreements allow SES to fully leverage its satellite and fleet investments and operate its assets and frequency spectrum efficiently. We can focus on further commercialising our satellite capacity and ensuring excellent services for customers and users worldwide.”
Michel de Rosen, chairman and CEO of Eutelsat, added: “Guided by key objectives to deliver clients impeccable service and to optimise spectrum use, Eutelsat and SES have taken a pragmatic and business-like approach to reaching this settlement. These long-term agreements clarify the conditions for interference-free operations, enabling each company to independently expand its commercial activity in a competitive environment.
“Eutelsat is committed to delivering innovative services at one of the most vibrant neighbourhoods in the broadcasting market and can now further improve the productivity of its in-orbit resources and future investments.”
Following the settlement, Eutelsat estimates the impact on revenues for its fiscal year 2013-2014 at approximately €5m, while there will be no impact on revenues in the two following years.
This is a considerable improvement on its forecasts in the wake of switching off the disputed transponders. At the time the company said that it expected a loss of €20m in expected revenues for the fiscal year 2013-2014, and approximately €25m for each of the two following years.
The 500MHz of Ku-band transponders had constituted two thirds of the capacity of Eutelsat-28A and was principally used for video traffic for the UK. Eutelsat stated that it was not possible to use these transponders for any other purpose.
