Service launch not coming soon…
GATINEAU — The CRTC has approved an application by Elon Musk’s Space Exploration Technologies (SpaceX) for a Basic International Telecommunications Services (BITS) licence to provide telecom services via SpaceX’s Starlink low-Earth-orbit (LEO) satellite constellation.
The Commission said in a letter dated October 15 and addressed to SpaceX’s chief financial officer, Bret Johnsen, it received 2,585 interventions regarding the licence application, and after considering the submitted comments, it is approving the application and issuing a BITS licence to SpaceX. Getting a BITS licence is not exactly the highest hurdle there is to clear (most are approved with no fanfare) and no, possessing that licence doesn’t mean Starlink will soon start serving Canada).
The terms of the BITS licence conditions were not disclosed in the letter, but they include regular filings to the Commission.
“The Commission notes that a BITS licence does not by itself authorize an entity to operate as a facilities-based carrier or non-facilities-based service provider. All entities who provide services as a facilities-based carrier must at all times comply with the appropriate regulatory framework, including the ownership and control requirements of section 16 of the Act and the Canadian Telecommunications Common Carrier Ownership and Control Regulations. Entities who provide services as a non-facilities-based service provider must register as such with the Commission and comply at all times with the appropriate regulatory framework,” reads the Commission’s letter.
Starlink has made public statements saying it wants to serve rural and remote areas with broadband delivered via LEO satellites, initially in the northern United States and Canada, with plans to expand globally. On Sunday, October 18, SpaceX launched 60 more Starlink satellites, which was the fourteenth satellite launch for the Starlink constellation, says a SpaceX Twitter post. According to some estimates, Starlink will need 4,000 satellites in orbit to begin service and even when it gets to 12,000 satellites it will only be able to serve less than 500,000 subscribers in North America at 100 Mbps.
As mentioned here in the past, SpaceX’s Starlink service still needs to acquire spectrum to operate in Canada.
We asked Starlink and Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada the spectrum question, including whether or not SpaceX has asked for spectrum in Canada. While Starlink/SpaceX did not respond to an email prior to publication of this story, ISED told us the following:
“The regulations that govern Low Earth Orbit satellites in Canada, in particular with respect to spectrum access, are based on a combination of the international and domestic rules that govern the use of satellite orbits and spectrum. International rules are established through the International Telecommunications Union (ITU). In Canada, Innovation, Science and Economic Development (ISED) has put in place the licensing policy, procedures and rules around the use of Canadian spectrum,” a spokesperson said in an email.
“There are other international and/or domestic rules that relate to orbital debris, space safety, and use of sensitive data.
“Canada licences satellites that can operate around the world and approves access to the Canadian market by satellites authorized by other countries. The following link shows the satellites that are currently authorized in Canada to provide broadband through fixed satellite, as well as their associated spectrum.”
Neither SpaceX nor Starlink appear on those ISED lists.
However, added the spokesperson, “until a foreign LEO broadband system has been approved for access to the Canadian market, it will not appear on the list but may have access internationally to spectrum. ISED does not comment on whether specific applications may be under consideration.”
