British communications regulator yesterday said it has opened three separate consultations on spectrum work, which relate to changing satellite gateway fees, a proposed new non-geostationary orbit (NGSO) gateway licence for Amazon Kuiper and introducing short notice, short duration licences in the lower 2.3 GHz band to support demand from the Shared Access and PMSE (programme making and special events) communities for quick spectrum access to deliver innovative new services.

In recent years there has been a significant growth in demand for spectrum from the satellite sector as it provides connectivity to an increasing number of households and businesses, Ofcom said in a statement.

“We have facilitated this growth by making more spectrum available, including for satellite ‘gateways’ – components in satellite networks that connect the data beamed via satellites to the internet). However, increasing demand means that NGSO gateways can contribute to spectrum scarcity (for other satellite users and fixed services).

We are therefore proposing to use Administered Incentive Pricing (AIP) rather than flat fees for NGSO satellite gateway licences, which will encourage users to think carefully about their spectrum needs, incentivise the highest value uses, and in turn promote economic efficiency and growth,” Ofcom said.

It added that it has already used this approach for satellite gateway licences for geostationary systems (GSO), and are proposing to update its AIP fee formula to promote efficient use of spectrum.

“We are also currently considering making Q/V and E spectrum bands available for satellite gateways, and the consultation proposes how we would calculate fees in these bands,” the regulator said.

Separately, Ofcom is also proposing to grant an NGSO earth station licence to Amazon Kuiper UK Limited for a gateway site in Bude, Cornwall. This licence would authorise Amazon Kuiper to operate an NGSO gateway earth station which connects to its planned NGSO satellite system, which is also known as ‘Kuiper’. The gateway will help Kuiper provide high-speed, low-latency broadband services to households, businesses and other customers in the UK, as well as backhaul connectivity to telecommunications carriers.