C-band Advocacy and Reference Materials

Introduction

Satellites provide secure and essential communications, navigation, weather, and imaging services in the United States and around the world. Governments, media, industry, first responders, and consumers across the world rely on satellite networks to provide primary and backup communications for essential business transactions, operational missions and mass communications. End users include:

Federal agencies, including the Departments of Defense and Homeland Security;
State and local law enforcement, public safety and administrative officials;
National and local media;
Businesses, including utilities, banks, retail outlets, transportation and oil and gas companies;
Millions of American and global consumers, who receive broadband, video, and audio in their homes and while on the move via satellites.

C-band downlink spectrum, long a mainstay of the global satellite communications industry, has been identified by numerous national governments and international as a possible target for re-purposing for other uses, such as terrestrial wireless broadband. However, the global satellite industry has spent tens of billions of dollars to deploy services using this portion of the radio-frequency spectrum, and continues to invest and innovate in the band. SIA seeks to educate policymakers around the world about satellite companies’ ongoing use of and investment in these frequencies.

Reference Materials