Attachment Legal Narrative SES-STA-INTR2019-01036

Attachment Legal Narrative

This document pretains to SES-STA-INTR2019-01036 for Special Temporal Authority on a Satellite Earth Station filing.

IBFS_SESSTAINTR201901036_1648561

Before the
FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION
Washington, DC 20554

In the Matter of

Application of Alaska Communications ) Call Sign: E170205
Internet LLC for 60-Day Special Temporary )
Authorization (“STA”) ) File No. SES-STA-_____________

APPLICATION FOR SPECIAL TEMPORARY AUTHORIZATION

Pursuant to Section 25.120 of the rules of the Federal Communications Commission (the

“FCC” or “Commission”), 47 C.F.R. § 25.120, Alaska Communications Internet LLC (“Alaska

Communications Internet”) seeks this 60-day special temporary authorization (“STA”),

commencing on Tuesday, April 10, 2019, to continue to operate ten (10) remote earth station sites

as part of its existing C-band very small aperture terminal (“VSAT”) network1 during the

pendency of its underlying modification application for long-term operating authority.2

Consistent with its existing STA for the identical operations proposed herein,3 Alaska

Communications Internet also seeks to operate the previously licensed Dimond D hub site and

five remote sites pursuant to updated operating parameters. Alaska Communications Internet will

continue to operate these sites in portions of the C-band at fixed locations in Alaska while

communicating with the EUTELSAT 115WB satellite located at the 114.9° W.L. orbital position.

Grant of this STA will enable Alaska Communications Internet to continue delivering

critically needed broadband services supported by the Commission’s Schools and Libraries

Universal Service Support Mechanism, commonly known as “E-rate,” to students, teachers, and

staff of the Kuspuk School District, Alaska, ensuring continuity of service to the school district

1
See Alaska Communications Internet LLC, File No. SES-LIC-20171116-01257, Call Sign E170205,
and subsequent modification and amendment applications (“ACI Network License”).
2
See Alaska Communications Internet LLC, File No. SES-MOD-20180626-01472 (“ACI Modification
Application”).
3
See Alaska Communications Internet LLC, File No. SES-STA-20181109-03201 (“Kuspuk STA”).

during the academic year. Moreover, grant of this STA will strongly serve the public interest by

allowing Alaska Communications Internet to continue providing enhanced broadband

connectivity to schools and facilities in the Kuspuk School District, thus delivering improved

educational opportunities and resources, enabling distance learning, and supporting staff,

students, and teachers in these remote Alaska bush communities.4

Although the ACI Modification Application for regular authority to serve the Kuspuk

School District sites came off of Public Notice on August 17, 2018, the application continues to

be coordinated internally between the Commission’s International Bureau (“IB”) and the Wireless

Telecommunications Bureau (“WTB”). Thus, pursuant to consultation with Commission staff,

Alaska Communications Internet files this STA to extend its existing authority in the Kuspuk STA

and allow these schools and their students, teachers, and staff to continue to realize the benefits of

improved broadband services, while also affording the Commission sufficient time to review and

process the ACI Modification Application.

I. Background

Alaska Communications Internet is an affiliate of Alaska Communications Systems

Group, Inc. (“Alaska Communications”), a publicly-traded company that, through its subsidiaries,

provides terrestrial wireline telecommunications and broadband-enabled services throughout

Alaska as the largest incumbent local exchange carrier in the state.5 Alaska Communications

4
Unlike Alaska’s three largest population centers, and the surrounding rural communities, Alaska bush
communities are isolated geographically from infrastructure resources commonly available elsewhere
in the state, and the nation as a whole. Most bush communities cannot be accessed by road and are not
connected to the state’s power grid. To reach these communities, people, as well as goods and
services, must arrive by plane, barge, snow machine, all-terrain vehicle, or other off-road
transportation means. Communications services in these communities generally must rely on satellite
or terrestrial point-to-point microwave transport links to Anchorage, Fairbanks, or Juneau.
5
The incumbent local exchange carrier (“ILEC”) subsidiaries of Alaska Communications are: ACS of
Anchorage, LLC; ACS of Fairbanks, LLC; ACS of Alaska, LLC; and ACS of the Northland, LLC; see

2

Internet provides essential broadband and voice-over-Internet Protocol (“VoIP”) services to

enterprise, business, educational, health care, and residential customers throughout the state.

The ACI Network License authorizes Alaska Communications Internet to operate a network

of C-band satellite earth stations in order to provide satellite services to diverse users in remote

locations in Alaska. Specifically, from the gateway hub in Anchorage, Alaska, the network

currently serves the Alaska Native population of St. Paul Island and the Tanadgusix Corporation

(“TDX”), an Alaska Native corporation created pursuant to the Alaska Native Claims Settlement

Act (“ANCSA”). In addition, the C-band VSAT network serves local businesses co-owned by the

Bristol Bay Economic Development Corporation (“BBEDC”),6 providing broadband connectivity

that supports the local fishing and seafood industries, as well as a test site located in Anchorage,

Alaska. This Kuspuk STA extension request, and underlying ACI Modification Application, enable

Alaska Communications Internet to deliver the well-recognized benefits of broadband

telecommunications and Internet services to ten primary and secondary school locations supported

by the Commission’s E-rate support mechanism in additional Alaska bush communities. This

extension is particularly important now that the 2018-2019 school year is well underway and

students have passed the midpoint in their classes.

Alaska Communications Internet incorporates by reference (and attaches as an Exhibit to

this STA) the FCC Form 312 Schedule B and Technical Appendix provided with the ACI

Modification Application. Those documents provide relevant information relating to the earth

station operating parameters, performance information and radiation hazard analyses. At all ten

also ACS Long Distance, Inc., File Nos. ITC-214-19960612-00248, ITC-T/C-20050822-00382, ITC-
T/C-20040414-00190 (International Section 214 authorization).
6
The BBEDC is a not-for-profit company whose mission is to promote economic growth and
opportunities for residents of BBEDC’s member communities through sustainable use of the Bering
Sea resources. See http://www.bbedc.com.

3

remote sites, Alaska Communications Internet operates an identical 2.4m Prodelin Model 1244

(the “2.4m”) earth station, which is the same model that is currently licensed in the ACI Network

License and on the Commission’s Approved Non-Routine Earth Station Antennas List (“Non-

Routine Antenna List”).7 Moreover, Alaska Communications Internet will continue to operate

the earth stations below the maximum EIRP spectral density (“ESD”) levels authorized in the

ACI Network License and consistent within levels previously approved by the Commission.8

II. Discussion

With this STA request, Alaska Communications Internet seeks authority to continue to

operate ten (10) remote earth station sites as part of the ACI Network License, each of which

completed coordination on June 22, 2018, to communicate with the EUTELSAT 115WB satellite

in portions of the C-band. Consistent with the Kuspuk STA and ACI Modification Application, in

order to accommodate larger bandwidth carriers for the increased traffic to the new Kuspuk sites

and add corresponding receive frequencies to the currently licensed remote sites, this STA also

seeks to continue operation in additional C-band transmit frequencies and with increased antenna

input power for the previously licensed Dimond D hub.

Alaska Communications Internet acknowledges the Commission’s Public Notice placing

a temporary freeze on the filing of all new or modification applications for earth stations in the

7
See Approved Non-Routine Earth Station Antennas, https://www.fcc.gov/approved-non-routine-earth-
station-antennas; Letter to Marlene H. Dortch, “Alaska Communications Internet LLC – Section 1.65
Letter Regarding Application for C-Band Very Small Aperture Terminal (“VSAT”) Blanket License,
File No. SES-LIC-20171116-01257, Call Sign 170205” (filed on Dec. 22, 2017) (citing Harris
Corporation, File No. SES-LIC-20060302-00342, Call Sign E060075; Intelsat LLC, File No. SES-
LIC-20091027-01364, Call Sign E090186; Globe Wireless LLC, File No. SES-LIC-20120116-00058,
Call Sign E120017).
8
Each site will utilize an iDirect modem, which assigns individual time slots for each earth station’s
transmissions, and thus there is no potential for aggregation of transmissions resulting in an
exceedance of the off-axis ESD levels provided in this application.

4

3.7-4.2 GHz band, effective as of April 19, 2018.9 The Temporary Freeze Public Notice does

not include a freeze on requests for special temporary authority for short-term operations, and

thus the instant request is outside the scope of the freeze. In the ACI Modification Application,

Alaska Communications Internet more thoroughly discusses the reasons why a waiver of the

Temporary Freeze Public Notice is justified in connection therewith.

In addition, Alaska Communications Internet incorporates by reference the waiver

request made in the ACI Modification Application10 to permit Alaska Communications Internet

to use up to 144 megahertz of bandwidth on EUTELSAT 115WB.11 Although the Commission

previously waived Section 25.115(c)(2)(i)(B) in the ACI Network License to permit Alaska

Communications Internet to use 72 megahertz of spectrum in each direction on Transponder 01C

of EUTELSAT 115WB, growing demand for Alaska Communications Internet’s C-band satellite

services in Alaska now necessitates use of an additional 72 megahertz of spectrum (i.e., 144

megahertz total, across Transponders 01C, 07C, and 08C) on EUTELSATSAT 115WB in its

network.

As demonstrated in the ACI Modification Application, the additional transponder capacity

is imperative to be able to properly scale and offer the most reliable connectivity solutions to the

remote communities of Alaska. The additional spectrum is necessary to deliver the required

9
See Public Notice, Temporary Freeze on Applications for New or Modified Fixed Satellite Service
Earth Stations and Fixed Microwave Stations in the 3.7-4.2 GHz Band, 90-Day Window to File
Applications for Earth Stations Currently Operating in the 3.7-4.2 GHz Band, DA 18-398 (rel. on
April 19, 2018) (“Temporary Freeze Public Notice”). See also, Public Notice, GN Docket Nos. 17-
183, 18-122, “International Bureau Announces 90-Day Extension of Filing Window, to October 17,
2018, to File Applications for Earth Stations Currently Operating in 3.7-4.2 GHz Band; Filing Options
for Operators with Multiple Earth Station Antennas,” DA 18-639 (rel. Jun. 21, 2018).
10
See ACI Modification Application, Legal Narrative, Section III.
11
See 47 C.F.R. § 25.115(c)(2)(i)(B) (permitting a C-band VSAT network to utilize up to 20 megahertz
of spectrum in each direction of transmission on up to three satellites, i.e., up to 60 megahertz total).

5

services to the ten Kuspuk School District locations, which cannot be added to the current

network within the currently licensed 72 megahertz range. The additional spectrum thus enables

the delivery of critically needed broadband telecommunications and Internet access services in

the Alaska bush, where terrestrial connectivity is simply unavailable.

A. Dimond D Hub Frequencies

Previously, the Commission granted Alaska Communications Internet a license to

communicate with Transponder 01C on EUTELSAT 115WB, operating at 3704-3776 MHz

(space-to-Earth) and 5929-6001 MHz (Earth-to-space). In order to effectively serve the ten new

Kuspuk School District sites using the Dimond D hub, Alaska Communications Internet requires

additional capacity on EUTELSAT 115WB. Alaska Communications Internet, therefore, has

leased Transponder 07C, operating in the 3944-4016 MHz (space-to-Earth) and 6169-6241 MHz

(Earth-to-space) bands. Utilizing the previously licensed 3.8m hub, Alaska Communications

Internet uses the new EUTELSAT 115WB Transponder 07C uplink and downlink (i.e., 72

megahertz in each direction in a single polarization) as the forward link (from the hub to each

Kuspuk School District remote site). Virtually all of that bandwidth is required to deliver the

broadband service speeds to all ten locations required under the Kuspuk School District’s

contract. Any remaining bandwidth on Transponder 07C, in addition to the currently licensed

bandwidth on Transponder 01C, is used to continue to serve Alaska Communications Internet’s

existing customers and preserve operational flexibility and capacity to provide reliable

connectivity to all customer locations.

Full use of Transponder 07C in this way allows Alaska Communications Internet to

utilize wider carriers with greater bandwidth capacity at the Dimond D hub, maximizing its

ability to deliver high-speed connectivity to the Kuspuk School District. As demonstrated in the

ACI Modification Application Schedule B, while the utilization of a 72 megahertz carrier

6

bandwidth results in a lower EIRP density – thus reducing the potential for interference with

other operations in the band – it also requires that Alaska Communications Internet slightly

increase the input power into the antenna. In the ACI Modification Application, Alaska

Communications Internet provides an updated radiation hazard study for the Dimond D hub

reflecting the increased input power.

B. Site Locations

Alaska Communications Internet seeks to continue to operate the following ten sites as

part of its C-band VSAT network in Alaska (together, the “Kuspuk School District sites”):

• Aniak School District Office (“Aniak DO”)
(geographic coordinates: 61° 34' 55.6" N, 159° 32' 18.3" W)

• Junior Senior High School (“JSHS”) - Aniak, AK
(geographic coordinates: 61° 34' 48.8" N, 159° 33' 06.7" W)

• Auntie Mary Nicoli Elementary School (“AMNES”) - Aniak, AK
(geographic coordinates: 61° 34' 49.0" N, 159° 31' 51.7" W)

• Crow Village Sam School (“CVSS”) - Chuathbaluk, AK
(geographic coordinates: 61° 34' 23.7" N, 159° 14' 57.8" W)

• Jack Egnaty Senior School (“JESS”) - Sleetmute, AK
(geographic coordinates: 61° 42' 9.7" N, 157° 10' 14.9" W)

• Johnnie John Sr School (“JJSS”) - Crooked Creek, AK
(geographic coordinates: 61° 51' 48.6" N, 158° 08' 18.2" W)

• Gusty Michael School (“GMSHS”) - Stoney River, AK
(geographic coordinates: 61° 47' 13.6" N, 156° 35' 17.7" W)

• George Morgan Senior High School (“GMHS”) - Kalskag, AK
(geographic coordinates: 61° 31' 57.9" N, 160° 20' 50.0" W)

• Joseph & Olinga Gregory Elementary School (“JOGES”) - Kalskag, AK
(geographic coordinates: 61° 32' 41.9" N, 160° 19' 3.7" W)

• Zackar Levi Elementary School (“ZLES”) - Kalskag, AK
(geographic coordinates: 61° 30' 43.6" N, 160° 21' 41.5" W)

7

Each site uses an identical 2.4m VSAT earth station of the same model that is authorized

in the ACI Network License for similar fixed C-band operations and is on the Commission’s

Non-Routine Antenna List.12 Although the 2.4m earth station does not comply with the gain

mask in Section 25.209 of the Commission’s rules, Alaska Communications Internet

demonstrates in the incorporated Schedule B that it will operate the terminals at maximum ESD

levels below those currently authorized in the ACI Network License and in compliance with the

ESD mask set forth in Section 25.218(d) of the Commission’s rules.13

At each site, the earth station is mounted on an existing rooftop in an area inaccessible to

the general public. Their locations are not among any “districts, sites, buildings, structures or

objects, significant in American history, architecture, archeology, engineering or culture, that are

listed, or are eligible for listing, in the National Register of Historic Places,”14 and thus they fall

within the exemptions of Section 1.1306(a)-(b) and Note 1 to that rule.15 Accordingly, no

environmental assessment is required as part of this application because each proposed site is

categorically exempt under Section 1.1306 of the Commission’s rules, 47 C.F.R. § 1.1306.

The flexibility to use additional transponder capacity is essential to enable Alaska

Communications Internet to offer reliable connectivity to the Kuspuk School District sites. Not

only is 72 megahertz of spectrum insufficient to enable service to all current customers of Alaska

Communications Internet, but the entire Transponder 01C frequency range is unavailable at three

of the new remote sites, necessitating an alternative solution. In all cases, Alaska Communication

12
Supra n. 6; see, e.g., Harris Corporation, File No. SES-LIC-20060302-00342, Call Sign E060075.
13
See 47 C.F.R. § 25.218(d).
14
47 C.F.R. § 1.1307(a)(4).
15
See 47 C.F.R. § 1.1306, Note 1 (“The provisions of §1.1307(a) requiring the preparation of EAs do not
encompass the mounting of antenna(s) and associated equipment (such as wiring, cabling, cabinets, or
backup-power), on or in an existing building, or on an antenna tower or other man-made structure,
unless §1.1307(a)(4) is applicable.”).

8

which is authorized to receive the downlink frequencies in the range of 3704-3776 MHz, used by

EUTELSAT E115WB Transponder 01C, as follows:

• Site 1: 100 Harbor View Drive, St. Paul, AK
Geographic Coordinates: 57° 7' 23.0" N, 170° 16' 45.0" W

• Site 2: 600 Telephone Ave., Anchorage, AK
Geographic Coordinates: 61° 11' 10.5" N, 149° 52' 15.57" W

• Site 3: Excursion Inlet, Alaska
Geographic coordinates: 58° 24' 55.3" N, 135° 26' 36.4" W

• Site 4: Kodiak Island, Alitak, AK
Geographic Coordinates: 56° 53' 52.2" N, 154° 14' 43.0" W

• Site 5: Naknek, AK
Geographic Coordinates: 58° 43' 43.7" N, 157° 00' 0.90"

Alaska Communications Internet plans, to the extent possible, to consolidate its transmit

and receive operations over time so that the forward link from the Dimond D hub to all remote

sites, including the previously licensed sites identified above, takes place using a single 72

megahertz wide carrier that saturates Transponder 07C. In order to put this plan into effect, all

remote sites must be authorized to receive the Transponder 07C downlink frequencies in the

range of 3944-4016 MHz.

D. Frequency Coordination

Alaska Communications Internet engaged Micronet Communications, Inc. (“Micronet”)

to perform frequency coordination in support of the ACI Modification Application, which was

completed on June 22, 2018. Pursuant to Sections 25.115(c)(2)(ii) and 25.203 of the

Commission’s rules, 47 C.F.R. §§ 25.115(c)(2)(ii) and 25.203, Micronet has conducted a

coordination analysis on behalf of Alaska Communications Internet that considers all existing,

proposed, and prior coordinated microwave facilities within the contours of the proposed earth

stations at the Kuspuk School District sites. Moreover, Micronet has fully coordinated the

10

Transponder 07C frequencies at the Dimond D hub, as well as the new Transponder 07C receive

frequencies at the five existing remote sites.

As demonstrated in the ACI Modification Application frequency coordination reports,

there is no potential for interference into other users of the C-band spectrum sought herein by

Alaska Communications Internet. First, Alaska Communications Internet’s proposed operations

at the Dimond D hub in Transponder 07C frequencies in the 3944-4016 MHz (space-to-Earth)

and 6169-6241 MHz (Earth-to-space) bands are fully compatible with other FCC-licensed

operations in the band.

Second, as noted, at each Kuspuk School District site, Alaska Communication Internet

plans to receive in Transponder 07C frequencies from the 3944-4016 MHz (space-to-Earth).

Depending on certain site-specific frequency limitations, Alaska Communications Internet will

either transmit in the 5929-6001 MHz band (Transponder 01C)19 or the 6189.565-6237.565 MHz

band (Transponder 08C).20 Transponder 08C was selected specifically to support three Kuspuk

School District sites – GMHS, JOGES and ZLES (the “Kalskag Sites”) – because Micronet was

unable to clear any available spectrum on Transponder 01C. Such site-specific spectrum

limitations illustrate the need for operational flexibility to permit use of the additional 72

megahertz frequency range from 6169-6241 MHz (Earth-to-space, across two transponders), as

well as the corresponding downlink frequencies, on EUTELSAT 115WB.

19
To prevent interference to nearby terrestrial microwave operations, Alaska Communications Internet
will limit its transmit operations to the 5960.2-6001 MHz band at the Aniak DO, JSHS, CVSS and
AMNES sites.
20
The Transponder 08C frequencies are within the Transponder 07C transmit frequency range, such that
the use of Transponder 08C does not result in any additional frequency bandwidth being used by the
network, and enabling Alaska Communications Internet to limit its Section 25.116(c)(2)(i)(B) waiver
request to the 144 megahertz total. Transponder 08C operates on the opposite polarity to Transponder
07C, enabling re-use of those frequencies for the return link at the Kalskag Sites.

11

Micronet received no objections in response to its Prior Coordination Notices, and Alaska

Communications Internet currently operates its network with no reported cases of interference.

Alaska Communications Internet will coordinate any additional hub or remote operations prior to

bringing them into use as part of the C-band VSAT network.

III. STA Request & Public Interest Considerations

Alaska Communications Internet respectfully requests this 60-day STA pursuant to

Section 25.120 of the Commission’s rules, 47 C.F.R. § 25.120. Section 25.120(b)(3) states that

the Commission may grant a temporary authorization for up to 60 days if the STA request has

not been placed on Public Notice and the applicant plans to file a request for regular authority for

the service. As noted, the ACI Modification Application has already been filed with the

Commission and the Public Notice period for the application ended on August 17, 2018. Based

on consultation with Commission staff, ongoing coordination between the IB and the WTB has

necessitated this STA extension request to ensure Alaska Communications Internet has

appropriate authority during the Commission’s ongoing review of the ACI Modification

Application. Pursuant to Commission rules and precedent, Alaska Communications Internet

understands that this timely filed request will effectively extend its current temporary authority

until the Commission acts on the instant application, affording sufficient time for coordination

between the IB and the WTB.21

21
See 47 C.F.R. §§ 25.120 & 25.163(b); Administrative Procedure Act § 9(b). See also 47 C.F.R.
§1.955(b); In the Matter of Marc D. Sobel Application for Consent to Assign the License for
Conventional 800 MHz SMR Station KKT934, Montrose, California, Memorandum Opinion & Order,
FCC 05-90, ¶¶ 2 & 6. Please note that although in the ordinary course a request for extension of
temporary authority must be received by the Commission at least 3 working days prior to the
expiration date of the existing temporary authorization (see 47 C.F.R. 25.120(a)), the Commission’s
Lapse in Funding Public Notice (DA 19-10) has granted an automatic extension of the filing deadline
to the day after the resumption of normal FCC operations.

12

Grant of this 60-day STA will strongly serve the public interest by allowing Alaska

Communications Internet to continue providing broadband services to multiple Kuspuk School

District elementary and secondary schools, as well as the district office, in remote Alaskan bush

communities, helping to improve educational opportunities by providing advanced satellite

connectivity that will support access to educational resources, research materials, distance

learning, and cloud-based record storage and other services. The proposed operations will also

greatly advance the public interest goals of E-rate, as mandated by Sections 254(h)(1)(B) and

254(h)(2)(A) of the Communications Act, 47 U.S.C. §§ 254(h)(1)(B), (h)(2)(A) and numerous

Commission orders.22 The educational resource and distance learning opportunities supported by

E-rate are particularly important in the Alaska bush, where schools in small communities have

limited resources and may struggle to reach the 10-student enrollment minimum to qualify for

22
E.g., E-rate Modernization Order, at ¶ 2 (“High-speed broadband, to and within schools, connects
students to cutting-edge learning tools in the areas of science, technology, engineering and math
(STEM) education, necessary for preparing them to compete in the global economy. High-speed
broadband also creates opportunities for customized learning, by giving our students and their teachers
access to interactive content, and to assessments and analytics that provide students, their teachers, and
their parents real-time information about student performance while allowing for seamless engagement
between home and school. Finally, high-speed broadband expands the reach of our schools and
creates opportunities for collaborative distance learning, providing all students access to expert
instruction, no matter how small the school they attend or how far they live from experts in their field
of study.”), ¶ 4 (“[W]e recognize the critical role the E-rate program plays in the lives of our students
and communities and the importance of ensuring that the program supports sufficient, equitable, and
predictable support for high-speed connectivity to and within schools and libraries. It is a crucial part
of the Commission’s broader mandate to further broadband deployment and adoption across our
nation.”).

13

Document Created: 2019-04-08 13:11:05
Document Modified: 2019-04-08 13:11:05

© 2024 FCC.report
This site is not affiliated with or endorsed by the FCC