Attachment submission

submission

SUBMISSION FOR THE RECORD submitted by Boeing

submission

2004-04-06

This document pretains to SAT-LOA-19970613-00053 for Application to Launch and Operate on a Satellite Space Stations filing.

IBFS_SATLOA1997061300053_370040

                                                                                       SQUIRE,
                                                                                            SANDERS      L.L.P.
                                                                                                  & DEMPSEY
                                                                                       1201 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W.
                                                                                       P.O. Box 407
                                                                                       Washington, D.C. 20044-0407
 SQUIRE      LEGAL
             COUNSEL                                                                   Office: +1.202.626.6600
SNDERs       WORLDWIDE                                                                 Fax: +1.202.626.6780


                                                                                                      (202) 626-6634
                                            April 5,2004

                                                                              VIA HAND DELIVERY


                                                           RECEIVED
  Federal Communications Commission
  445 12th Street, S.W.                                      APR - 5 2004
  Washington, D.C. 20054                               F # ) E M COMMUNICATIONS COMM19610N
                                                             OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY


         Re:     Request for Confidential Treatment
                 The Boeing Company
                 Authority for Use of the 1990-2025/2165-2200 MHz and
                 Associated Frequency Bands for a Mobile-Satellite System
                 FCC File Nos. 79-SAT-P/LA-97(16), 90-SAT-AMEND-98(20),
                 IBFS NOS.SAT-LOA- 19970926-00149, SAT-AMD-19980318-00021,
                 SAT-AMD-20001103-00159, SAT-MOD-20020726-00113,
                 SAT-MOD-20030711-00128 and S,4T-L41rMD-20030827-00241

  Dear Secretary Dortch:

          The Boeing Company (“Boeing”) respectfully requests that the documents covered by
  this correspondence be treated as confidential and be withheld from public inspection pursuant to
  Sections 0.457 and 0.459 of the Commission’s Rules, 47 C.F.R. $5 0.457, 0.459. In accordance
  with the requirements of Section 0.459(b), 47 C.R.F. 4 0.459(b), Boeing submits the following:

      0.459(b)(l): Boeing seeks confidential treatment for the attached (1) letter from Joseph P.
      Markoski to Marlene H. Dortch, dated April 5 , 2004, providing responses to the questions
      raised by the Commission in its letter dated March 25, 2004 (“CDR Response Letter”), (2)
      redacted excerpts from the Long Range Business Plan for Boeing Satellite Systems (“BSS
      LRBP”), (3) a copy of a BSS B&P Aiiihoriiz~tiioii,dated May 5, 2003 (“htay 5 , 2003
      Authorization”), (4) a redacted copy of a 2004 NBI Budget Letter, dated March 5, 2004
      (“March 5, 2004 Budget Letter”), ( 5 ) a redacted copy of a 2004 NE31 Budget Letter, dated
      March 25, 2004 (“March 25, 2004 Budget Letter”), (6) a list of hours worked by BSS
      employees on the 2 GHz MSS/NEXSYS program during the past five weeks (“Employee
      List”), and (7) a copy of the North American GEM Schedule, dated July 17, 2003 (“NA
      GEM Work Schedule”).


                                                                                       SQUIRE,
                                                                                            SANDERS      L.L.P.
                                                                                                  & DEMPSEY




    Marlene H. Dortch                                                                        April 5,2004
    Page 2


       0.459(b)(2): Boeing is providing this information, subject to the grant of confidential
       treatment, in response to a letter of inquiry from the FCC’s Satellite Division regarding the
       above captioned proceeding.’ The Division’s letter specifically requested access to the
       materials addressed in this request for confidentiality. In addition, the Commission recently
       indicated in its License Reform Order that licensees bear the burden of demonstrating that
       they have met their CDR milestones by providing evidence that supports a finding of
       compliance.2 All of the materials addressed by this request qualify as such evidence.

       0.459(b)(3): Boeing’s CDR Response Letter, BSS LRBP, May 5, 2003 Authorization,
       March 5 , 2004 Budget Letter, March 25, 2004 Budget Letter, Employee List and NA GEM
       Work Schedule contain highly sensitive, confidential, and proprietary commercial and
       technical information, including trade secrets regarding the construction of spacecraft.
       Such information “would customarily be guarded from competitors.” See 47 C.F.R.
       Q 0.457(d)(2). Furthermore, under the Freedom of Information Act (“FoIA”), “trade secrets
       and protected commercial or financial information obtained from a person and privileged or
       confidential” infomation are protected from disclosure. 5 U.S.C.A. Q 552(b)(4).

       Boeing’s CDR Response Letter, BSS LRBP, May 5, 2003 Authorization, March 5, 2004
       Budget Letter, March 25, 2004 Budget Letter, Employee List and NA GEM Work Schedule
       also contain highly sensitive, confidential and propnetfly commercial and financial
       information regarding Boeing’s internal operations, including information regarding the
       prices, terms and conditions upon which Boeing enters into arrangements with third-party
       customers. Boeing treats these materials and information as highly confidential and does
       not disclose this information to third parties. As such, the information qualifies as material
       that “would customarily be guarded from competitors” under the meaning of Section
       0.457(d)(2) of the Commission’s rules. In addition, these documents would be protected
       from disclosure under the FoIA as “trade secrets and commercial or financial information
       obtained from a person and privileged or confidential.” 5 U.S.C.A. Q 552(b)(4).

       0.459(b)(4): Boeing’s CDR Response Letter, BSS LRBP, May 5, 2003 Authorization,
       March 5, 2004 Budget Letter, March 25, 2004 Budget Letter, Employee List and NA GEM
       Work Schedule contain trade secrets and confidential information that are commercially
       sensitive within the satellite manufacturing industry, both with respect io the sale of
       satellites to commercial and governmental customers. The satellite manufacturing industry


1
  See Letterfi-om Thomas S. Tycz, ChieA Satellite Division, to Joseph P. Markoski, Squire, Sunders & Dempsey
L.L.P. (March 25, 2004).
2
 See Amendment of the Commission’s Space Station Licensing Rules and Policies, Mitigation of Orbital Debris,
First Report and Order and Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking in IB Docket No. 02-34, and First Report and
Order in IB Docket No. 02-54, FCC 03-102, 18 FCC Rcd 10760, 10833,l 191 (2003) (“License Reform Order”).


                                                                                           & DEMPSEY
                                                                              SQUIRE,SANDERS      L.L.P.




Marlene H. Dortch                                                                  April 5,2004
Page 3


   is extremely competitive, with the current global supply of satellite manufacturing capacity
   greatly exceeding the actual demand for satellite construction services.

   Boeing’s CDR Response Letter, BSS LRBP, May 5 , 2003 Authorization, March 5 , 2004
   Budget Letter, March 25, 2004 Budget Letter, Employee List and NA GEM Work Schedule
   also contain confidential commercial and financial information that is commercially
   sensitive within the satellite manufacturing industry, the aircraft manufacturing industry, the
   aerospace industry and the government and defense contracting and manufacturing
   industries. Each of these industries is extremely competitive, with the supply of global
   manufacturing capacity exceeding current customer demand. Boeing’s commercial aircraft
   sales are subject to intense competition, including foreign companies that are nationally
   owned or subsidized. Competition has increased further due to the impact of the events of
   2001 on the commercial aviation industry.

   0.459(b)(5): Boeing Satellite Systems (“BSS”), a wholly owned subsidiary of Boeing, is the
   world’s largest satellite manufacturer. Boeing maintains a competitive edge vis-&-visother
   satellite manufactures by offering customers the benefits of BSS’s experience and expert
   technical design capability. For example, Boeing’s 2 GHz MSS satellite is based on the
   BSS GEO-Mobile spacecraft model, the success of which has been demonstrated by its
   previous deployment for other geostationary MSS networks. Release of Boeing’s CDR
   Response Letter, BSS LRBP, May 5 , 2003 Authorization, March 5 , 2004 Budget Letter,
   March 25, 2004 Budget Letter, Employee List and NA GEM Work Schedule could
   compromise BSS’s competitive edge in the MSS market segment, resulting in substantial
   harm to BSS and Boeing.

   Boeing’s March 5 , 2004 Budget Letter, March 25, 2004 Budget Letter and Employee List
   also contain the names of BSS personnel, many of whom are considered to be the leading
   experts in the satellite design and manufacturing industry. Public disclosure of these names
   could provide Boeing’s competitors with a competitive advantage against Boeing by
   identifying Boeing personnel that could be the target of their recruitment efforts.

   In addition to offering customers superior technical capability, BSS also competes in the
   highiy competitive satellite manufacturing market based on the cost advantages of BSS’s
   economies of scale. Release of the cost and pricing information contained in Boeing’s CDR
   Response Letter, May 5 , 2003 Authorization, March 5 , 2004 Budget Letter, March 25, 2004
   Budget Letter and Employee List could compromise BSS’s competitive edge in the satellite
   manufacturing market, resulting in substantial harm to BSS and Boeing.

   0.459(b)(6): Boeing’s CDR Response Letter, BSS LRBP, May 5 , 2003 Authorization,
   March 5 , 2004 Budget Letter, March 25, 2004 Budget Letter, Employee List and NA GEM


                                                                            SQUIRE,
                                                                                 SANDERS     L.L.P.
                                                                                      & DEMPSEY




Marlene H. Dortch                                                                April 5,2004
Page 4


      Work Schedule are marked “Boeing Proprietary’’ and cannot be released to non-Boeing
      personnel without the execution of a confidentiality agreement.

      459(b)(7): Boeing’s CDR Response Letter, BSS LRBP, May 5 , 2003 Authorization, March
      5 , 2004 Budget Letter, March 25, 2004 Budget Letter, Employee List and NA GEM Work
      Schedule are not available to the public and, to the best of Boeing’s knowledge, have not
      been disseminated to non-Boeing personnel without the execution of a confidentiality
      agreement.

      0.459(b)(8): Boeing requests that the Commission permanently withhold the information
      contained in Boeing’s CDR Response Letter, BSS LRBP, May 5 , 2003 Authorization,
      March 5 , 2004 Budget Letter, March 25, 2004 Budget Letter, Employee List and NA GEM
      Work Schedule. Release of this information at any time in the future would cause
      substantial competitive harm to Boeing.

        For the foregoing reasons, Boeing respectfully requests that Boeing’s CDR Response
Letter, BSS LRBP, May 5 , 2003 Authorization, March 5 , 2004 Budget Letter, March 25, 2004
Budget Letter, Employee List and NA GEM Work Schedule be granted confidential status and
be withheld from public inspection.

                                            Sincerely,




                                            Bruce A. Olcott
                                            Counsel for The Boeing Company

cc:     Marylou Cahir
        Karl Kensinger

Enclosures



Document Created: 2004-04-07 16:05:06
Document Modified: 2004-04-07 16:05:06

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