Satellite/terrestrial 4G-LTE venture LightSquared has launched its first satellite just days after being granted an extension to its stringent milestone agreement with the FCC.
The Boeing-built SkyTerra 1 bird was launched to 101.3W by International…
Satellite/terrestrial 4G-LTE venture LightSquared has launched its first satellite just days after being granted an extension to its stringent milestone agreement with the FCC.
The Boeing-built SkyTerra 1 bird was launched to 101.3W by International Launch Services on 14 November from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.
The venture faced having its ATC licence revoked until the FCC on 8 November decided to extend the deadline for the satellite’s launch and commencement of operations to 1 January 2011, from 26 May 2010.
“This launch of our next-generation satellite is a major step forward in our mandate to offer an integrated terrestrial-satellite service and is a critical element that will enable us to meet our commitment to the FCC to provide service that covers over 90% of the US population by the end of 2014,” LightSquared spokesman Tom Surface told SatelliteFinance.
The FCC extension – the second time LightSquared has been allowed to modify its regulatory commitments – led some industry observers to accuse the regulator of double standards given that Globalstar, another ATC licence holder, had a similar request denied just a few months earlier.
In rejecting Globalstar’s request for a 16-month extension to comply with the rules governing its licence, the operator’s spectrum leasing agreement with terrestrial rural broadband provider Open Range was effectively annulled.
Despite LightSquared’s deadline extension, the wireless broadband venture is still tied to an ambitious timetable. It has committed to covering at least 100 million people in the US by 31 December 2012, at least 145 million people by the end of December the following year, and at least 260 million people by 31 December 2015.
Updating SatelliteFinance on SkyTerra 1’s progress, Surface said: “The major mechanical deployments including deployment of the solar panels, the Ku-band antenna, the L-band antenna, and the radiator panels are all scheduled to take place at the end of November into early December.
“Payload in-orbit testing and SBN System Level in-orbit testing commences immediately after this and both are anticipated to occur from early to mid-December and thru mid-to late January 2011.”
LightSquared’s second satellite, SkyTerra 2, is set to launch next year to complete its constellation, which will cover the United States in partnership with a terrestrial network to be built by Nokia Siemens Networks. The second bird will serve the FCC’s requirement to provide coverage redundancy for the integrated satellite-terrestrial service.
Meanwhile, Goldman Sachs reportedly plans to withdraw its entire US$120m investment in hedge fund Harbinger Capital Partners, Lightsquared’s major backer, following a 16% decline in returns this year.
According to reports, Harbinger founder Philip Falcone is also being investigated for allegedly borrowing US$113m from one of its funds last year to pay personal taxes. It is claimed that Falcone’s transaction occurred during a time when investors were prevented from exiting the fund because its assets were linked to Lehman Brothers’ bankruptcy.
Goldman Sachs did not return requests for comment.
