Attachment Description of MOD

This document pretains to SES-MFS-20180515-00624 for Modification w/ Foreign Satellite (earth station) on a Satellite Earth Station filing.

IBFS_SESMFS2018051500624_1396196

                                                                                          Row 44 Inc.
                                                                                        FCC Form 312
                                                                                            May 2018
                                                                                           Page 1 of 6


                                          ATTACHMENT

                      Description of Application for Modification of License


1.0    OVERVIEW
Row 44, Inc. (“Row 44”) seeks modification of its Ku-band Earth Stations Aboard Aircraft
(“ESAA”) license (Call Sign E080100) for the purpose of adding two additional satellite points of
communication. Row 44 seeks this modification subject to all terms and conditions set forth in its
current license1 and the operations proposed are otherwise consistent with the technical
specifications set forth in its current license. Operations using the additional satellites would use
both the TECOM Ku-Stream (SAA/Remote 2) and QEST Q050000 (GSAA/Remote 3) antennas.
The Form 312, Schedule B associated with this filing reflects only the additional points of
communication and additional receive frequencies for SES-15, and does not recapitulate the
technical data contained in its current license.

2.0    ADDITIONAL POINTS OF COMMUNICATION REQUESTED
Row 44 requests the addition of both the SES-15 satellite that recently initiated service at the 129°
W.L. orbital location, as well as the AMC-1 satellite relocated from 129.15° W.L. to 130.9° W.L.
SES-15 is a Gibraltar-authorized satellite which is permitted to serve U.S. locations under Call Sign
S2951 (FCC File Nos. SAT-PPL-20160126-00007, SAT-MPL-20160718-00063 and SAT-MPL-
20170914-00130). As this satellite now occupies the same nominal orbital location previously
occupied by AMC-1, which is included in Row 44’s current license at this location, Row 44 would
ordinarily be required only to file a notification of the change of satellite pursuant to Section
25.118(a)(3)(ii) of the FCC’s Rules; however, as Row 44 also seeks to expand its operations to
include the 10.7-11.7 GHz downlink bands, this modification application is being submitted to allow
this expanded spectrum use. AMC-1 is a U.S.-licensed satellite under Call Sign S2445 (FCC File
No. SAT-MOD-20170810-00115), also licensed to SES.

Complete technical information regarding the SES-15 satellite was submitted to the FCC in the
proceeding authorizing the satellite’s inclusion on the Ku-band Permitted List. Row 44 therefore
simply requests that its existing ESAA license be updated to reflect use of SES-15 on a primary
basis for ESAA operations in the 14-14.5 GHz and 11.7-12.2 GHz bands, and it seeks authority as
further detailed below to communicate with SES-15 on an unprotected basis in the 10.7-11.7 GHz
downlink band, consistent with Commission precedent and the terms of the SES-15 authorization.

The addition to the Row 44 license of authority to communicate using SES-15, as well as the
relocated AMC-1, will provide additional near term space segment capacity for Row 44’s ESAA
network, thereby allowing it to provide additional throughput and coverage for the provision of its
in-flight Wi-Fi connectivity services to airline passengers on flights operating over North America,


1
 See Row 44 Inc., Call Sign E080100, FCC File No. SES-MOD-20171002-01094 (Sat. Div., granted
November 22, 2017).


                                                                                              Row 44 Inc.
                                                                                            FCC Form 312
                                                                                                May 2018
                                                                                               Page 2 of 6
the Gulf of Mexico, the Caribbean and portions of the Pacific. Row 44 is concurrently seeking
special temporary authority (“STA”) to permit it to operate using these same parameters.

3.0     COORDINATION CERTIFICATIONS [47 C.F.R. § 25.227(b)(2)]
Row 44’s intended operations are within the scope that SES has coordinated with the adjacent
satellite operators relative to both satellites, and should not cause harmful interference into adjacent
satellites operating in accordance with FCC's two-degree spacing policy. Exhibit A attached hereto
provides copies of the May 8, 2018 coordination certification letters covering Row 44’s proposed
operations using both SES-15 and AMC-1.

In the event that a Ku-band NGSO FSS system is launched in the future, Row 44 would enter into
coordination with the NGSO FSS system operator to establish operating parameters that permit
successful co-frequency sharing, and would modify its operations as necessary to effect any
coordination agreement reached. Row 44 acknowledges that the Commission may condition the
grant of any modified license issued to it upon a requirement that it complete such coordination at
the appropriate time.


4.0 TECHNICAL DATA, LINK BUDGETS AND PREDICTED COVERAGE
AREAS [47 C.F.R. § 25.227(b)(4)]

Exhibit B attached hereto includes representative link budgets and a depiction of the geographic
coverage contours for operations using SES-15 at 129 W.L. and AMC-1 at 130.9 W.L.


5.0     REQUEST FOR WAIVER OF FCC RULES
Row 44 seeks a waiver of footnote NG52 to the Commissions Table of Allocations to permit
operations with the SES-15 satellite in the extended Ku-band segments at 10.7-10.95 GHz and 11.2-
11.45 GHz on an unprotected, non-interference basis, including the operation of terminals in U.S.
airspace. Grant of the requested waiver is fully consistent with applicable Commission precedent,
under which the Commission has observed that “terminals on U.S.-registered aircraft may need to
access foreign satellites while traveling outside of the United States (e.g., over international waters),
and therefore may need to downlink in the extended Ku-band in certain circumstances.”2 The
Commission has previously authorized ESAA operators to use other extended Ku-band frequencies
for downlinks through the modification of the Table of Allocations to permit ESAA operations not
only in the conventional Ku-band, but in the discrete 10.95-11.2 GHz and 11.45-11.7 GHz segments
of the extended Ku-band as well.3 The Commission then acknowledged that ESAA operators may


2
  See Service Rules and Procedures to Govern the Use of Aeronautical Mobile Satellite Service Earth Stations
in Frequency Bands Allocated to the Fixed Satellite Service, IB Docket No. 05-20, Notice of Proposed
Rulemaking, 20 FCC Rcd 2906, 2917 (¶ 18) (2005).
3
 See 47 C.F.R. § 2.106, note NG52, adopted in Revisions to Parts 2 and 25 of the Commission’s Rules to
Govern the Use of Earth Stations Aboard Aircraft Communicating with Fixed-Satellite Service
Geostationary-Orbit Space Stations Operating in the 10.95-11.2 GHz, 11.45-11.7 GHz, 11.7-12.2 GHz and


                                                                                          Row 44 Inc.
                                                                                        FCC Form 312
                                                                                            May 2018
                                                                                           Page 3 of 6
also require access to other extended Ku-band downlink spectrum, and that access to such spectrum
could be granted “on a case-by-case basis under Part 25 licensing rules.” 4 In the ESAA R&O, the
Commission made clear that ESAA operations in the 10.95-11.2 GHz and 11.45-11.7 GHz band
were permitted on an unprotected basis and no waiver of footnote NG52 is required for such
operations, but this existing exception does not extend to the 10.7-10.95 GHz and 11.2-11.45 GHz
portions of the extended Ku-band. The Commission has nonetheless authorized ESAA operations in
these bands on multiple occasions, most recently by granting authority very similar to that requested
here to Gogo Inc.’s licensee entity, AC BidCo LLC.5

Consistent with these past rulings, Row 44 requests a waiver of the Table of Allocations and
footnote NG52 to the extent necessary to permit its terminals to receive transmissions from SES-15
in both the 10.7-10.95 GHz and 11.2-11.45 GHz band segments, including use of the band to
provide for U.S. domestic in-flight services. The Commission has already specifically granted SES
U.S. market access for SES-15 in-orbit operations in these band segments, and has expressly waived
footnote NG52 to allow SES-15 to provide domestic services in the 10.7-11.7 GHz frequencies on
an unprotected, non-interference basis in the United States.6 Accordingly, authorizing Row 44 to
receive signals from SES-15 in the 10.7-10.95 GHz and 11.2-11.45 GHz band segments consistent
with this grant will not alter any existing space segment operations, and therefore will not create any
new risk of harmful interference to other authorized users of the spectrum. Furthermore, Row 44
will not claim interference protection from such authorized users. Under these circumstances,
waiving Section 2.106 and footnote NG52 is appropriate.


6.0      REVISED SPACECRAFT, FREQUENCY & BEAM COVERAGE




                                         [See Next Page]




14.0-14.5 GHz Frequency Bands, FCC 12-161, Report & Order, 27 FCC Rcd 16510, 16520-21 (¶ 21) (2012)
(“ESAA R&O”).
4
    See ESAA R&O, 27 FCC Rcd at 16520 n.43.
5
 See Modification Application of AC BidCo LLC, FCC File No. SES-MFS-20171220-01351(Call Sign
E120106) (granted March 9, 2018).
6
 SES Satellites (Gibraltar) Limited, FCC File No. SAT-MPL-20170914-00130 (Call Sign S2951), Grant-
Stamp Attachment at 2-3 (¶ 3) (granted November 22, 2017).


                                                                               Row 44 Inc.
                                                                             FCC Form 312
                                                                                 May 2018
                                                                                Page 4 of 6
              Table 1: Spacecraft, Frequency & Beam Coverage Table
(All Provide Some Coverage to U.S. Locations; * =Non-U.S., Permitted List Satellite)

                            Beam Coverage            Tx           Rx        Satellite
  Satellite     Location
                                Area               (GHz)         (GHz)      Operator

                           North America,
  AMC-1         130.9 W    Central America      14.05-14.47   11.7-12.2
                           and Pacific

                           North America,
  AMC-2         84.85 W    Caribbean and        14.05-14.47   11.7-12.2
                           North Atlantic

                           North America,
                           Central America,
  AMC-3          72.0 W                         14.05-14.47   11.7-12.2
                           Atlantic and
                           Caribbean
                           North America,
                           Caribbean, Central
  AMC-9          83.0 W                       14.05-14.47     11.7-12.2       SES
                           America and North
                           Atlantic
                           North America,
                           Central America,
   SES-1        101.0 W                         14.05-14.47   11.7–12.2
                           Pacific and
                           Caribbean
                           North America,
                           Central America,
  SES-10         67.0W                          14.05-14.47   11.7-12.2
                           South Atlantic and
                           Caribbean
                                                              10.7-10.95,
                           North America,
                                                              10.95-11.2,
                           Central America,
  SES-15        129.0 W                         14.05-14.47   11.2-11.45,
                           Caribbean and
                           Pacific                            11.45-11.7,
                                                              11.7-12.2
                           North America,                     10.95-11.2,
                           Central America,                   11.2-11.45,
  IS-29E         50.0 W    South America,       14.05-14.47   11.45-11.7,   Intelsat
                           North Atlantic and                 11.7-12.2,
                           Caribbean                          12.2-12.5


  Eutelsat                 North America,
                114.9 W    North Atlantic and   14.05-14.47   11.7-12.2     Eutelsat
  115WB*
                           Pacific Ocean


                           North America,                                    Telesat
 Telstar 12     109.2 W    Gulf of Mexico       14.05-14.47   11.7-12.2     (Skynet)
                           and Caribbean


                                                                                       Row 44 Inc.
                                                                                     FCC Form 312
                                                                                         May 2018
                                                                                        Page 5 of 6

        7.0      TELEPORT UPLINK LOCATIONS

                                               Table 2
                 Teleport Locations for Provision of Service within the United States


                 Orbital                Teleport Location(s)            Site
 Satellite                                                                        Call Sign(s)
                 Location                                             Operator


 AMC-1           130.9 W                    Holmdel, NJ              GEE/MTN       E160163



 AMC-2            80.85W                 N. Las Vegas, NV              Hughes      E940460



 AMC-3            72.0 W                    Holmdel, NJ              GEE/MTN       E160163


 AMC-9             83.0W                North Las Vegas, NV            Hughes      E940460


  SES-1           101.0W                North Las Vegas, NV            Hughes      E940460

                                                                      Level 3/
 SES-10            67.0W                  Steele Valley, CA                        E950202
                                                                       Vyvx

 SES-15          129.0 W                South Mountain, CA              SES        E170139


  IS-29E          50.0 W                    Holmdel, NJ              GEE/MTN       E160163

 Eutelsat
                  114.9W              Southfield (Detroit), MI         Hughes      E990170
 115WB*


Telstar 12        109.2W                  South Jordan, UT           LBiSat LLC    E030342

* = Non-U.S.-licensed satellite included on Ku-band Permitted List


                                                                                        Row 44 Inc.
                                                                                      FCC Form 312
                                                                                          May 2018
                                                                                         Page 6 of 6
7.0    LICENSEE CERTIFICATION

I, Simon McLellan, Chief Engineer of Row 44, Inc. (“Row 44”) and Global Eagle Entertainment,
Inc. (“Global Eagle”), hereby certify that Row 44/Global Eagle will continue to comply with the
requirements of paragraphs (a)(6), (a)(9), (a)(10), and (a)(11) of Section 25.227 of the Commission’s
Rules and the conditions of its existing license.




                                                           Simon McLellan
                                                           Chief Engineer
                                                           Row 44, Inc., a subsidiary of
                                                           Global Eagle Entertainment, Inc.
May 15, 2018



Document Created: 2018-05-15 13:14:18
Document Modified: 2018-05-15 13:14:18

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