Attachment Narrative

This document pretains to SES-STA-20100830-01105 for Special Temporal Authority on a Satellite Earth Station filing.

IBFS_SESSTA2010083001105_837159

Before the FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION Washington, D.C. 20554 ) File No. SES-STA-20100609-00684 ) File No. SES-STA-20100203-00155 ) File No. SES-STA-20100428-00489 ) File No. SES-STA-________-_____ In the Matter of ) Call Sign E980081 ) ECHOSTAR CORPORATION ) File No. SES-STA-20100609-00683 ) File No. SES-STA-20100203-00154 Application for Renewal of Special ) File No. SES-STA-20100428-00488 Temporary Authority to Operate Three ) File No. SES-STA-________-_____ Transmit/Receive Earth Stations with ) Call Sign E980082 EchoStar 6 at 61.65º W.L. ) ) File No. SES-STA-20100609-00682 ) File No. SES-STA-20100203-00153 ) File No. SES-STA-20100428-00487 ) File No. SES-STA-________-_____ ) Call Sign E070273 APPLICATION FOR RENEWAL OF SPECIAL TEMPORARY AUTHORITY By this Application, EchoStar Corporation (“EchoStar”) requests renewal of its special temporary authority (“STA”) for 60 days to operate three transmit/receive earth stations (Call Signs E980081, E980082 and E070273) to provide telemetry, tracking and control (“TT&C”) and feeder link communications in the Broadcasting-Satellite Service (“BSS”) band for the EchoStar 6 satellite at 61.65 W.L. Pursuant to the Commission’s authorization,1 EchoStar moved the satellite from 72.7 W.L. to 61.65 W.L. on February 28, 2010, as a result of the loss of additional transponder capacity on EchoStar 3. EchoStar 6 is currently operating as an in- 1 See Stamp Grant, File No. SAT-STA-20100203-00020 (granted Mar. 3, 2010) (“Satellite STA Application”), renewed by Stamp Grant, File No. SAT-STA-20100512-00100 (granted May 25, 2010); Stamp Grant, File No. SAT-A/O-20100203-00019 (granted July 2, 2010).

orbit spare at the 61.65 W.L. orbital location.2 The current STA is set to expire on August 31, 2010 and therefore, EchoStar is requesting this renewal.3 Prior to EchoStar 6’s move to the nominal 61.5º W.L. orbital location, EchoStar was operating two Direct Broadcast Satellite (“DBS”) service satellites at the nominal 61.5º W.L. orbital location – EchoStar 3 and EchoStar 12 (formerly Rainbow 1). As the Commission is aware, EchoStar 3 experienced several transponder failures due to Traveling Wave Tube Amplifier (“TWTA”) anomalies, and was operating at reduced capacity.4 On January 7, 2010, EchoStar 3 experienced another TWTA anomaly further diminishing its operating capacity. On May 3, 2010, EchoStar 3 suffered a further TWTA anomaly.5 As a result of this failure, EchoStar was not able to maintain its level of service provided from 61.5 W.L. without at least the relocation of one additional satellite to the orbital location. EchoStar, therefore, requested and received special temporary authority to relocate EchoStar 6 to 61.65º W.L. as an in-orbit spare, to supplement, as needed, the service provided by EchoStar 3 2 Id. 3 See Stamp Grant, File Nos. File No. SES-STA-20100609-00684 (granted July 14, 2010); File No. SES-STA-20100609-00683 (granted July 14, 2010); SES-STA-20100609-00682 (granted July 14, 2010) (“Earth Station STAs”). 4 See EchoStar 3 Status Report, File No. SAT-STA-20090821-00092 (filed Dec. 30, 2009); EchoStar 3 Status Report, File No. SAT-STA-20100226-00037 (filed June 30, 2010); EchoStar Satellite Operating Corporation, Application for Extension and Modification of Special Temporary Authority to Operate Direct Broadcast Satellite Service over Channels 23 and 24 at the 61.5º W.L. Orbital Location, Order and Authorization, 22 FCC Rcd. 2223 ¶¶ 4-6 (2007). 5 Letter from Petra A. Vorwig, Steptoe & Johnson LLP, to Marlene H. Dortch, Secretary, Federal Communications Commission, File Nos. SAT-STA-20100401-00062, SAT-STA- 20100203-00020 (May 3, 2010). -2-

and EchoStar 12 in order to maintain regular programming.6 EchoStar also requested and received authority to operate temporarily the above referenced transmit/receive earth stations to provide TT&C and feeder link service for the satellite once it arrived at 61.65 W.L. On July 14, the Bureau renewed EchoStar’s STA to operate those earth stations for 60 days.7 EchoStar hereby applies to extend that STA for an additional 60 days. The continued operation of EchoStar 6 ensures that EchoStar’s customer, DISH Network Corporation, will be able to continue providing DBS service to consumers without any service interruptions. On July 10, 2010, EchoStar successfully launched EchoStar 15, a 32-transponder- capable DBS satellite that, in light of the loss of AMC-14, will effectively replace EchoStar 3 at 61.5° W.L.8 The satellite became fully operational on August 4, 2010.9 EchoStar 6, EchoStar 3 and EchoStar 12 will continue to supplement the service, as needed, provided by EchoStar 15. EchoStar 6 will remain at 61.65 W.L. as an in-orbit spare. EchoStar will advise the Commission of any change in its plans. I. THIS APPLICATION IS IN THE PUBLIC INTEREST AND WILL NOT CAUSE HARMFUL INTERFERENCE This application is in the public interest for the reasons set forth in the Satellite STA Application, which are incorporated herein by reference. Furthermore, grant of this application will ensure the safe operation of EchoStar 6 at the 61.65 W.L. orbital location. Grant of this 6 See Stamp Grant, File No. SAT-STA-20100203-00020 (granted Mar. 3, 2010), renewed by Stamp Grant, File No. SAT-STA-20100512-00100 (granted May 25, 2010). 7 See Earth Station STAs. 8 See File No. SAT-LOA-20100310-00043 (granted July 1, 2010). 9 See Letter from Christopher R. Bjornson, Counsel for DISH Operating L.L.C., Steptoe & Johnson LLP to Robert Nelson, Chief, Satellite Division, International Bureau, Federal Communications Commission, File No. SAT-LOA-20100310-00043 (dated Aug. 6, 2010). -3-

application also will not cause harmful interference because EchoStar will operate the earth stations to conduct TT&C and feederlink capability for the temporary operation of the EchoStar 6 satellite at 61.65° W.L. in accordance with the grant conditions.10 II. WAIVER PURSUANT TO SECTION 304 OF THE ACT In accordance with Section 304 of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended, 47 U.S.C. § 304, EchoStar hereby waives any claim to the use of any particular frequency or of the electromagnetic spectrum as against the regulatory power of the United States because of the previous use of the same, whether by license or otherwise. III. CONCLUSION For the foregoing reasons, EchoStar respectfully requests renewal of its special temporary authority for 60 days to operate three transmit/receive earth stations (Call Signs E980081, E980082 and E070273) to provide TT&C and feederlink capability for the EchoStar 6 satellite during its operations at 61.65° W.L. Respectfully submitted, /s/ Pantelis Michalopoulos Alison Minea Christopher Bjornson Corporate Counsel L. Lisa Sandoval EchoStar Corporation Steptoe & Johnson LLP 1110 Vermont Avenue NW, Suite 750 1330 Connecticut Avenue, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20005 Washington, D.C. 20036 (202) 293-0981 (202) 429-3000 Counsel for EchoStar Corporation August 30, 2010 10 See Earth Station STAs at 2. -4-


Document Created: 2010-08-30 14:26:56
Document Modified: 2010-08-30 14:26:56
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