Attachment response

response

REPLY submitted by EchoStar

response

2005-05-10

This document pretains to SAT-STA-20050321-00068 for Special Temporal Authority on a Satellite Space Stations filing.

IBFS_SATSTA2005032100068_434797

STEPTOE &JOHNSONw atrorners at caw Pantels Michlopoutos sive 1330 ComnecteAerve. NW rmamens Received Washingon. DC 200361795 prichalodsteproecom MAY 1R s 2005o Tel2024203000 tac2024003002 septoccon y Breach IntcmmationalBureau May 10, 2005 RECEIVED may 1 0 2005 Via HAND DELIVERY reteal Communcaton Comniason oiten o Seriiny Marlene H. Dortch Secretary Federal Communications Commission 445 12th Street, S.W. Washington, D.C. 20036 Re: EchoStar Satellite LL.C. Application for Special Temporary Authority To Conduct Telemetry, Tracking and Command Operations During the Relocation of EchoStar 4 to 77° W.L.. (File No. SAT—STA—20050321—00068) Dear Ms. Dortch, EchoStar Satellite LL.C. (*EchoStar") hereby responds to the May 4, 2005 letter from William M. Wiltshire, Counsel for DIRECTV Enterprises, LLC (‘DIRECTV") to Thomas S. Tyez, Chief, Satellite Division, FCC (*DIRECTYLerter®). The issues raised by DIRECTV are unripe and unsuitable for evaluation in the context of reviewing this application, which is an STA request simply to conduct TT&C operations during the relocation ofEchoStar 4 to 77° W.L. As DIRECTV itselfrecognizes,‘the above—captioned application does not include a request by EchoStar for authority to provide service to the United States from EchoStar 4 at 77° W.L. Instead, EchoStar 4 will be brought into use atthe 77° W.L. orbital location to enable QuetzSat, S. De RL. de C.V. (*QuetzSat")to serve Mexico and to comply with the conditions of QuetzSat‘s Mexican BSS concession. Compliance with the conditions of QuetzSat‘s concession is importantto preserve the possibility oservice to the United States from the 77° W.L. slot in the future. Because EchoStar is not requesting such authority today, however, the only issue relating to the 72.5° W.L. and 77° W.L. slots is whether Mexico and Canada have successfully coordinated the relevant DIRECTV Letter at2. washimctow + new york +. rmornix + tos anorits + towbon +. srussius

STEPTOE &JOHNSON« Marlene H. Dortch May 10, 2005 Page 2 modification filings for their respective orbital locations. That question too is one of ITU process that is irrelevant to this proceeding but, in any event, the answer is yes. in that regard, the DIRECTYLetter is inconsistent with DIRECTV‘s stated position that nothing remains to be done to coordinate the existing Canadian and Mexican flings at 72.5° W.L. and 77° W.L. respectively.‘ DIRECTV has previously asserted: Under ITU rules, an administration affected by a proposed modification to the BSS plan has four months following the date ofpublication in which to comment on the proposal, with failure to comment being understood as agreement to the proposed modification. Both Mexico and Canada were affected by the other administration‘s proposed modification, yet neither commented on the other‘s filing within the allotted four—month period. Accordingly, at this point, neither Mexico nor Canada has standing to claim protection against operations in conformance with the parameters submitted by the other administration." Indeed, EchoStar understands that the 1996 Mexican modificationto the Plan at 77° W.L. has in fact been coordinated fully with the Canadian ITU modification at 72.5° W.L.* There is therefore no room for any objection to the use ofthe 77° W.L. slot consistent with Mexico‘s 1996 ITU filing from any Canadian licensee —— nor from DIRECTV, which is not even the Canadian licensee for 72.5° W.L. DIRECTV‘s request for technical information regarding EchoStar 4 is also inconsistent with its own request for authority to move its DIRECTV 3 satellite to 82° W.L. This was a request similar to the instant application, since DIRECTV was not secking authority to serve the United States * DIRECTV made this argument in response to the question raised by EchoStar as to "whether the Mexican 77° W.L. lot will remain available for service tothe U.S."ifthe Commission were to authorize DIRECTV‘s use ofthe Canadian slot at 72.5° W.L... See Reply Comments of EchoStar Satelite LL.C. at 4fled in SAT—STA—20040107—00002 (fled Mar. 10, 2004). * See Letter from William M. Wiltshire, Counsel for DIRECTV to Thomas Tyez, Chief, Satellite Division, FCC, at1—2, filed in SAT—STA—20040107—00002 (filed May 24, 2004). * Specifically, notwithstanding DIRECTV‘s assertion to the contrary, see DIRECTY Letter at 2 1.6, EchoStar has been informed by QuetzSat that the Mexican modification at 77° W.L. (fled with the ITU in 1996) and the Canadian modifications at 72.5° and 82° W.L. (also filed with the ITU in 1996) have been coordinated between their respective administrations._ While subsequentfilings may not have been coordinated, this is irrelevant because the EchoStar 4 satellite‘s EIRP levels will be within the parameters ofthe 1996 modification forall Canadian and U.S. points.

STEPTOE &JOHNSON« Marlene H. Dortch May 10, 2008 Page3 from that location. in support ofthe 82° W.L. application, DIRECTV id not submit any ofthe technical information thatit asks EchoStar to provide here." EchoStar 4 will operate at 77° W.L. in full conformity with the 1996 Mexican ITU modification overall points in Canada and the United States. The attached map of the EIRP contours for the proposed operations of the EchoStar 4 satellite at the 77° W.L. orbital location demonstrates that the operation of EchoStar 4 at that location will be below or atthe EIRP envelope ofthe 1996 Mexican ITU modification over the United States and Canada. (See Attachment A.) This means that EchoStar4 will conform to that modification throughout the 72.5° W.L. service area. Outside ofthe United States and outside the 72.5° W.L. service area, EchoStar 4 may operate above the ITU modification over a limited number of points —— a small area near Mexico City, over a small part of the Caribbean Sea, in the Pacific Ocean, and in some Central American countries. The EchoStar 4 operation in these areas will be on a non—interference basis at this time. While service to the United States is not at issue in this proceeding, EchoStar notes that it would be inappropriate for a Canadian orbital slot to be used to delay service to the United States from a Mexican slot. The United States has entered into a direct—to—home protocol with Mexico that allows reciprocal service from the orbital locations ofthe one country tothe consumers of the other without need for any case—by—case application ofthe "ECO—Sat" standard,° but has no comparable agreement with Canada. But as previously indicated, the question of coordination ofoperations involving service to the United States from the two slots does nor arise in this proceeding. Accordingly, DIRECTV‘s requests for tchnical information and additional time to review such information should be dismissed because ofthe irrelevance ofsuch technical information to the instant limited request for special temporary authority. As discussed above, this irrelevance is demonstrated by, among other things, the fact that the Commission approved the DIRECTV 3 satellite‘s move to 82° W.L. without requesting similar information." * While DIRECTV attempts to disinguish its request on the ground that it "involved proposed operations at orbital positions that were at least 10° away from any BSS slot serving the U.S.," see DIRECTV Letter at 3, this disinction is unavailing. EchoStar has pending before the Commission an application to use the 86.5° W.L. orbitallocation for service to the United States, and that application was pending at the time DIRECTV‘s request was filed. See EchoStar Satellie LL.C., SAT—LOA— 20030600—00113 (filed Jun. 6, 2003); DIRECTY, Inc., SAT—STA—20030903—00300 (filed Sept. 3, 2003). * See Protocol Conceming the Transmission and Reception of Signals from Satellites forthe Provision of Direct—to—Home Satellite Services In the United States of America and United Mexican States (Nov. 8, 1996). " See DIRECTV Inc., 19 FCC Red. 11055 (Int‘l Bur. 2004).

STEPTOE &JOHNSON= Marlene H. Dortch May 10, 2008 Page4 If you have any questions regarding this matter, please contact the undersigned. Respectfully submitted, Pawldu MwCALaM/a / Der . Pantelis Michalopoulos Counselfor EchoStar Satellite L L.C. Cs: Thomas Tyez, Chief, Satellite Division, Interational Bureau Karl Kensinger, Intemational Bureau Jay Whaley, International Bureau William M. Wiltshize, Counselfor DIRECTV Enterprises, LC

Attachment A EchoStar 4 EIRP contours at 77° W.L. sc so0 souteo uiutim.neu, z00 i 3 soo as 30 an aco se Troirscugn) in Oues


Document Created: 2005-05-18 15:48:14
Document Modified: 2005-05-18 15:48:14
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