Ex Parte Letter for

Ex PARTE PRESENTATION NOTIFICATION LETTER submitted by SES Americom, Inc.

Ex Parte Ltr for 12 Feb 2014 Call with D Cornell

2014-02-18

This document pretains to SAT-AMD-20131113-00132 for Amended Filing on a Satellite Space Stations filing.

IBFS_SATAMD2013111300132_1035777

SatCom Law LLC 1317 F St. NW, Suite 400 Washington, D.C. 20004 T 202.599.0975 www.satcomlaw.com February 18, 2014 FILED ELECTRONICALLY Ms. Marlene H. Dortch Secretary Federal Communications Commission 445 12th Street, S.W. Washington, D.C. 20554 Re: Notice of Ex Parte Presentation, IBFS File Nos. SAT-RPL-20121228-00227 & SAT-AMD-20131113-00132, Call Sign S2892 Dear Ms. Dortch: On February 12, 2014, the undersigned, outside counsel for SES, spoke by telephone with Diane Cornell, Special Counsel to Chairman Wheeler, to discuss the above-referenced application for the SES-3 C- and Ku-band replacement satellite. The SES-3 application has been designated as permit-but-disclose for purposes of the ex parte rules effective October 31, 2013. 1 The purpose of the call was to seek expedited grant of the SES-3 application. During the call, I argued that the SES-3 application fully conforms to all applicable rules and is consistent with Commission policy, so there is no basis for denial of the application. I also emphasized that deferring action on the SES-3 application would create unacceptable risk for current customers served by AMC-1. In particular, I noted that NBCUniversal and other Ku- band customers of AMC-1 have planned for the transition to SES-3 to begin later this month, including making arrangements for personnel, equipment, and other resources needed for the transition. Furthermore, the proposed February-August 2014 transition window allows NBCUniversal to plan the transition around significant live sports events. In contrast, I noted that delaying action on SES-3 would expose Ku-band customers of AMC-1 to significant uncertainty and the risk of service disruption and increased costs. Although AMC- 1 is healthy today and its useful stationkept life is currently expected to extend until April 2016, there can be no guarantees, and the risk that this aging satellite will develop a health issue will only increase as time goes by. I observed that if the move of Ku-band traffic to SES-3 cannot begin as currently scheduled, it will be impossible to perform the transition without substantial and widespread disruption if AMC-1 suffers an unexpected anomaly. Authorizing SES-3 at that point will be too late. As SES has explained, because of the unusual situation relating to the Ku-band polarization of AMC-1, Ku-band customers are facing a lengthy and complicated transition in the best of 1 See Policy Branch Information, Actions Taken, Report No. SAT-00979, DA No. 13-2141, rel. Nov. 8, 2013 at 2.

Ms. Marlene H. Dortch -2- February 18, 2014 circumstances, requiring visits to antennas that are widely dispersed. If the transition to SES-3 has to commence suddenly because an unexpected problem arises with AMC-1, Ku-band customers will be scrambling to make these site visits in order to transition to SES-3 on an expedited basis. Until that process can be completed – which will take up to six months – customers will face service outages if AMC-1 is not operating reliably. Given these facts, I argued that there is no justification for deferring action on the SES-3 C- and Ku-band application pending completion of coordination of the Canadian-licensed 17/24 GHz BSS payload on the spacecraft. To the contrary, I argued that it is unreasonable for DIRECTV to ask for deferral to finish coordination now because DIRECTV had years to pursue coordination of its inferior 17/24 GHz BSS spectrum rights and failed to initiate any discussions. Please contact the undersigned if you have any questions. Respectfully submitted, /s/ Karis A. Hastings Karis A. Hastings Counsel for SES karis@satcomlaw.com Attachment cc: Diane Cornell William Wiltshire, Counsel for DIRECTV Margaret Tobey, VP, NBCUniversal


Document Created: 2014-02-18 12:22:46
Document Modified: 2014-02-18 12:22:46
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