On July 14, 2021, the Intersputnik International Organization of Space Communications (Intersputnik) and Russian Satellite Communications Company (RSCC) signed an Agreement on cooperation in using frequency assignments in GEO and other satellite orbits for the implementation of the Joint Use of Satellite Capacity project.
As decided by the joint, 49th session of the Board and 23rd session of the Operations Committee of Intersputnik held on May 14, 2021, one of the organization’s main tasks at the present stage is the analysis of the possibility of attracting new partners to jointly use frequency assignments to satellite networks and definition of the conditions of cooperation in the joint use of orbit and frequency resource.
This task was entrusted to the Intersputnik Directorate, headed by Director General Ksenia Drozdova, since June 15, 2021. RSCC is one of the 25 national signatories of Intersputnik, which unites 26 member countries from Europe, Asia, Latin America and South-East Asia.
Offering access to the satellite resources of the Russian constellation practically on all continents, RSCC is interested in providing global service to its customers. Appointed at the end of last month, RSCC Director General Alexey Volin noted that the signed agreement, “offers a new cost-effective solution to RSCC customers willing to have a single entry point for communications services in any region of the world. It is a well-known fact, that no operator has got 100% coverage of the globe or solid competences in non-geostationary telecommunications systems. The Agreement gives us an opportunity to participate in using the orbit and frequency resource according to the model commonly known as VNO. Cooperation under this model allows avoiding substantial capital investment otherwise required to set up and maintain a satellite network for narrow and new market segments and, at the same time, broadens the service capabilities of RSCC as an all-purpose satellite operator.”
The unified satellite infrastructure of Intersputnik signatories consists of about 30 satellites owned or leased by the signatories, as well as a network of teleports distributed across the world. This makes it possible to offer satellite telecommunications services with the same conditions and globally, with a single, round-the-clock, technical support service.
Commenting on the signed agreement, Drozdova said, “The Agreement is interesting because it introduces a totally new business model for cooperation between operators. Strictly in line with the organization’s fundamental documents and following the decisions of the governing bodies, we offered the signatories cooperation in using frequency assignment in geostationary and other orbits to implement projects on the joint use of satellite capacity and to address the needs of both the signatory and the organization. It is important for us that the satellite resource used by Intersputnik in the signatories’ available frequency bands according to the Agreement on the establishment of the organization makes up Intersputnik’s space segment, which can be used along with Intersputnik’s own resource. It is a great honou for Intersputnik that it was RSCC, which has the largest satellite fleet among all our signatories, that became the first operator to sign this innovative Agreement. I confess that after transition from RSCC to take a position at Intersputnik I am doubly pleased that we have successfully managed not only to preserve but also to obviously strengthen the good traditions of reliable partnership and mutually enriching cooperation.”