Eutelsat headquarters in Paris, France. Photo: Eutelsat

Eutelsat has joined forces with Intelsat and SES on a proposal for the future use of the lower C-band spectrum in the U.S. Intelsat, Intel, and SES were the first to develop the proposal. This is a huge boost to Intelsat, in particular, which has been the main satellite player behind this proposal.

The proposal aims to protect the quality and reliability of C-band services provided by satellite operators to U.S. broadcasters, media, and data companies. It also establishes a commercial and technical framework that would enable terrestrial mobile operators to quickly access spectrum in the 3,700 to 4,200 MHz frequency band, accelerating the deployment of next-generation 5G services in the U.S.

The proposal specifies the use of a consortium, which is open to all satellite operators delivering services in the C-band downlink frequencies in any part of the lower 48 U.S. The consortium will oversee the governance of the initiative, define and implement the methodology for spectrum clearance, and serve as the sole interface for market-based transactions with parties interested in deploying terrestrial mobile services in specific portions of the C-band.