[Code of Federal Regulations]
[Title 47, Volume 2]
[Revised as of October 1, 2003]
From the U.S. Government Printing Office via GPO Access
[CITE: 47CFR25.157]

[Page 308-309]
 
                       TITLE 47--TELECOMMUNICATION
 
                    CHAPTER I--FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS
                         COMMISSION (CONTINUED)
 
PART 25--SATELLITE COMMUNICATIONS--Table of Contents
 
                  Subpart B--Applications and Licenses
 
Sec. 25.157  Consideration of NGSO-like satellite applications.

    (a) This section specifies the Commission's procedures for 
considering license applications for ``NGSO-like satellite systems.'' 
For purposes of this section, the term ``NGSO-like satellite system'' is 
defined as:
    (1) All NGSO satellite systems, and
    (2) All GSO MSS satellite systems, in which the satellites are 
designed to communicate with earth stations with omni-directional 
antennas.
    (b) Each NGSO-like satellite system application will be reviewed to 
determine whether it is acceptable for filing within the meaning of 
Sec. 25.112. Any application that is not acceptable for filing would be 
returned to the applicant.
    (c) Each NGSO-like satellite system application that is acceptable 
for filing will be reviewed to determine whether it is a ``competing 
application,'' i.e., filed in response to a public notice initiating a 
processing round, or a ``lead application,'' i.e., all other NGSO-like 
satellite system applications.
    (1) Competing applications that are acceptable for filing will be 
placed on public notice to provide interested parties an opportunity to 
file pleadings in response to the application pursuant to Sec. 25.154.
    (2) Lead applications that are acceptable for filing will be placed 
on public notice. This public notice will initiate a processing round, 
establish a cut-off date for competing NGSO-like satellite system 
applications, and provide interested parties an opportunity to file

[[Page 309]]

pleadings in response to the application pursuant to Sec. 25.154.
    (d) After review of each of the applications in the processing 
round, and all the pleadings filed in response to each application, the 
Commission will grant all the applications that meet the standards of 
Sec. 25.156(a), and deny the other applications.
    (e)(1) In the event that there is insufficient spectrum in the 
frequency band available to accommodate all the qualified applicants in 
a processing round, the available spectrum will be divided equally among 
the licensees whose applications are granted pursuant to paragraph (d) 
of this section, except as set forth in paragraph (e)(2) or (e)(3) of 
this section.
    (2) In cases where there are only one or two applications in a 
processing round granted pursuant to paragraph (d) of this section, each 
applicant will be assigned 1/3 of the available spectrum, and the 
remaining spectrum will be made available to other licensees in an 
additional processing round pursuant to paragraph (c) of this section.
    (3) In cases where there are three or more applications in a 
processing round granted pursuant to paragraph (d) of this section, and 
one or more applicants apply for less spectrum than they would be 
warranted under paragraph (e)(1) of this section, those applicants will 
be assigned the bandwidth amount they requested in their applications. 
In those cases, the remaining qualified applicants will be assigned the 
lesser of the amount of spectrum they requested in their applications 
and the amount spectrum that they would be assigned if the available 
spectrum were divided equally among the remaining qualified applicants.
    (f)(1) Each licensee will be allowed to select the particular band 
segment it wishes to use no earlier than 60 days before they plan to 
launch the first satellite in its system, and no later than 30 days 
before that date, by submitting a letter to the Secretary of the 
Commission. The licensee shall serve copies of this letter to the other 
participants in the processing round pursuant to Sec. 1.47 of this 
chapter.
    (2) The licensee shall request contiguous bandwidth in both the 
uplink and downlink band. Each licensee's bandwidth selection in both 
the uplink and downlink band shall not preclude other licensees from 
selecting contiguous bandwidth.
    (3) If two or more licensees in a processing round request the same 
band segment, all licensees other than the first one to request that 
particular band segment will be required to make another selection.
    (g)(1) In the event that an applicants' license is cancelled for any 
reason, the Commission will redistribute the bandwidth allocated to that 
applicant equally among the remaining applicants whose licenses were 
granted concurrently with the cancelled license, unless the Commission 
determines that such a redistribution would not result in a sufficient 
number of licensees remaining to make reasonably efficient use of the 
frequency band.
    (2) In the event that the redistribution of bandwidth set forth in 
paragraph (g)(1) of this section would not result in a sufficient number 
of licensees remaining to make reasonably efficient use of the frequency 
band, the Commission will issue a public notice initiating a processing 
round, as set forth in paragraph (c) of this section, to invite parties 
to apply for an NGSO-like satellite system license to operate in a 
portion of the bandwidth made available as a result of the cancellation 
of the initial applicant's license. Parties already holding licenses to 
operate an NGSO-like satellite system in that frequency band will not be 
permitted to participate in that processing round.
    (3) There is a presumption that three satellite licensees in a 
frequency band are sufficient to make reasonably efficient use of the 
frequency band.
    (h) Services offered pursuant to an NGSO-like license in a frequency 
band granted before the Commission has adopted frequency-band-specific 
service rules for that band will be subject to the default service rules 
in Sec. 25.217.

[68 FR 51505, Aug. 27, 2003]