Nancy Matimu appointed new Multichoice Kenya CEO VVVolVolVolVol o6 o6 66l l. .No. NoNo. No78 N N 55 oo5.. 2 March 2018 2020 AFRICA Nigeria AFRICA Has local content policy any impact on the Space sector? Africa Magic Channels Aand ne wthe le ariseder aofn dNollywood player in the aerospace industry C O N T E N T S Vol. 8 No. 2 Streamlining licensing procedures for small satellites Enabel partners SES to connect foreign aid projects in Editor in-chief Aliyu Bello Africa via satellite Executive Manager Tonia Gerrald Ethiopia joins Africa’s space race SA to the editor in-Chief Ngozi Okey NTA plans infrastructural upgrade Head, Application Services M. Yakubu Editorial/ICT Services John Daniel MultiChoice in Zambian economy Usman Bello Reviewing US ban of Indian PSLV Alozie Nwankwo Viasat visits Nigeria on readiness to deploy broadband services Juliet Nnamdi Client Relations Sunday Tache Globalstar announces 2019 fourth quarter Lookman Bello annual results Safiya Thani Nancy Matimu appointed new Multichoice Kenya CEO Marketing Offy Pat Meteorologists to learn satellite monitoring skills Tunde Nathaniel Wasiu Olatunde Google announces US$1 million African Media Relations Favour Madu internet safety fund Khadijat Yakubu Intelsat announces fourth quarter and full-year 2019 results Zacheous Felicia Has local content policy any impact Finance Folarin Tunde on the Space sector? Egypt and the "space race” Space Watch Magazine is a publication of Communication Science, Inc. All correspondence should be addressed to editor, space Watch Magazine. 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And really only apply to a subset of this new advanced launch capabilities, small because they don't have the same sector, they also don't apply to satellite satellites, and the possibility of innovative economic constraints with deploying to constellations, such as those from new services, including the provision of rural areas as terrestrial providers, they OneWeb or Amazon, says Steve Nixon, broadband to billions of people around the can focus on the people most likely to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce's world. Unfortunately, while regulatory need their service – those in rural parts president. reform efforts are underway, many of our of the US and around the world. Here are three things that the FCC can do current satellite rules still date from the to accomplish these goals. First, we need dawn of the space age. Today's order is a This new era of spaceflight is still to encourage all operators to develop good start, but the FCC must continue to unfolding, and many questions remain. more spectrally efficient systems. As update its policies to encourage American But the FCC cannot afford to fall behind launch has become more frequent, we're leadership in this new golden age of these developments, the risk is too trying to cram more satellites into fewer space exploration. high. The potential benefits of these and fewer frequencies. To relieve this innovative broadband services should increasing pressure we must drive all American space companies are cause us to reexamine our satellite operators—old and new, to utilize i n n o v a t i n g i n d r a m a t i c w a y s . rules to determine whether they help or advanced technologies to use spectrum Improvements in technology and the use hinder our goal of ensuring broadband efficiently. of reusable launch vehicles have access to rural America. We must The FCC has repeatedly recognized that, changed the nature of the launch industry. adopt policies that both encourage because spectrum is a limited resource, After years where the number of investment in the networks we've parties must utilize it as efficiently as American launches barely cracked the already authorized, while leaving room possible. In the satellite context, new mid-teens, last year we saw over 30 US for new players who will provide new technologies like phased array antennas launches, with the promise of far greater competition and new services. By and adaptive beam-forming will permit increases to come. While some of these doing so, we will strengthen American satellites to target narrow coverage areas launches involve traditional, large leadership in the new Space Race and more precisely and reuse spectrum many geostationary satellites in high orbits, an establish the US regulatory approach times over to maximize throughput.\] increasing number represent a wave of as a model for other nations. smaller next-generation satellites that will While many people may not be aware of it, go into low orbits and cost only a fraction As industry continues to deploy the the FCC has a critical role in authorizing of their larger counterparts, using faster next generation of communications commercial launches. Commercial and smaller state-of-the art processors. technologies in our urban centers, at operators currently use spectrum . The demand for small satellites has least 21 million Americans currently do licensed to Federal users to communicate experienced a six-fold increase since not have access to home broadband, a with and track their launch vehicles. 2012 and licensing requests are expected necessity in our modern world. This Because of the Federal allocation of this to accelerate, according to Dr. Bhavya Lal persistent digital divide has real-world spectrum, operators must work with at the Institute for Defense Analysis. The c o n s e q u e n c e s i n t e r m s o f Commission staff to obtain a Special projected surge in activity raises several opportunities for employment, Temporary Authorization for each launch. salient points about the sustainability of education and civic engagement, and this sector in low-earth orbit. is hardening into a state of internet Third and finally, the Commission should inequality. We must address this proceed with its orbital debris rulemaking. ]These satellites will provide a wide- problem before it gets worse. As this item recognizes, the issue of variety of services, ranging from national “Right now, if you want to apply for an orbital debris is a critical one, particularly security missions, to position, navigation FCC application for a geosynchronous given the growing potential for thousands and timing, to weather and environmental bird which might be a half a billion of small satellites in low-earth orbit. sensing. But the area that I'm most dollar asset that application fee is Because of their numbers, small size and excited about is the potential for these $130,000,” Nixon said. “If you want to low orbit, these satellites present satellites to help address one of our do something in low-earth orbit with a fundamentally different risks than toughest problems, improving rural small satellite, right now the application traditional satellites, yet our rules have not America's access to broadband. fee for that is about $450,000 and that been updated since 2004. Last year the satellite might only cost that much, so Commission issued a Notice of Proposed It's certainly true that traditional there is a little bit of a discrepancy Rulemaking on this issue. We need to geostationary satellite operators have there.” While these proposed move forward with final orbital debris rules and will continue to offer valuable streamlined procedures are a to protect satellite safety and provide services to these remote areas. A new necessary step, there will be questions certainty to the rapidly growing satellite generation of operators promise high- from industry. For example, the 180 kg industry. speed service via constellations of limit does not line up with smallsat thousands of satellites in low-Earth orbit. categories from the FAA. The FAA By Geoffrey Starks T h e s e n e w p r o v i d e r s p r o m i s e defines a micro satellite by weight of 11 widespread high speed coverage while to 200 kg. The industry has traditionally reducing latency to the tens of treated satellites below 600 kg as 5 APPOINTMENTS WorldStream expands was also the CFO & Company Secretary for was among the company's founding Ispat Alloys Ltd from 1993 to 1999. m a n a g e m e n t t e a m . S p a c e c o m leadership team, hires Sandeep is a Commerce Graduate from established in 1994, launched its first Finance Director from Banaras Hindu University (BHU), geostationary satellite – AMOS-1 in Chartered Accountant (equivalent to CPA) 1996. A dynamic, growing, satellite and Company Secretary from the operator- Spacecom operates the AMOS EY respective Institutes in India. He has also completed an Executive Education communications satellite fleet, covering W o r l d S t r e a m , a f a s t - g r o w i n g Programme on Leadership at the London diverse territories with an International Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) hosting Business School and an Executive global expansion growth strategy. provider with 15,000 dedicated servers Education program on Strategic Finance at under management and company-owned IMD, Lausanne.