EU set to clash with US over radio waves

Date: 02/03/2000

By Peter Chapman

THE EU is preparing for battle with the US over key negotiations on the future of Europe's proposed global navigation satellite system and a slate of other state-of-the-art radio, television and telecoms services.

The warning from aides to Information Society Commissioner Erkki Liikanen comes as preparations continue for the May World Radio Communications (WRC) Conference in Istanbul, where countries are due to agree how to carve out scarce space on the world's airwaves for new services.

A Commission paper setting out the Union's position calls on Europe to fight for the 'radio spectrum' it needs to set up GALILEO - the planned competitor to the US' monopoly of the global satellite navigation used by aircraft, cars, shipping and the military.

The creation of GALILEO was given top priority by former Transport Commissioner Neil Kinnock and EU governments, amid fears that the Union would otherwise be totally reliant on the US to supply services in a key strategic area.

"GALILEO is a big issue politically. The Americans have their own Global Positioning System (GPS). They currently offer their services free of charge to the rest of the world, but many fear that in the future they may charge for that," said one Commission official. "Now Europe wants its own system and it needs frequencies. The US is not objecting in the open, but of course you can ask the question 'would it be in the interests of the US to get competition?'."

EU insiders say this question was effectively answered by Donald Abelson, international bureau chief of the US' Federal Communications Commission, in recent interviews with American technology journals in which he insisted that he would fight to "protect the integrity of the GPS".

Experts are also warning that transatlantic clashes are likely in negotiations over other key technologies.

The Commission paper highlights the vital need for space on the airwaves for third-generation mobile telecoms services, which are set to replace current GSM services in Europe. But Abelson has put the issue near the bottom on his list of priorities for the WRC 2000 agenda, reflecting the recent commercial failure of satellite telecoms services such as Iridium.

"The Americans are asking for much less. Since they had their fingers burnt with Iridium, they are a bit reluctant. In 1992, they said they needed many frequencies for telephony by satellite. They got it and it was a disaster," said a Commission official.

The US and Union could also clash over the technical requirements for the new breed of 'Internet-in-the sky' satellites which would allow massive amounts of data to be transmitted over the airwaves instead of via fibre optic cables.

There are fears that systems such as American billionaire Bill Gates' proposed Teledesic and the European-led Skybridge system could interfere with existing services.

Officials warn that Washington may demand a technical solution which keeps Teledesic on track while limiting the scope for competitors such as Skybridge, which will use French Alcatel technology.

Other potential areas for conflict at what is expected to be a politically-charged conference include satellite TV and radio services, with officials predicting that developing countries will demand the right to reserve certain parts of the airwaves for themselves.

Commission sources admit that this would appear to be the fairest option, but question whether poorer countries would be able to make use of this capacity and argue that granting them this right would limit the scope for new television services in Europe.

The biennial WRC conferences are given top priority by governments and industry alike because, without adequate radio spectrum, firms could see their plans for multi-billion-euro systems in tatters while governments may be left without the vital strategic communications facilities deemed essential by their military planners.

The Commission's concerns are compounded by the Union's relatively weak role in international telecoms policy-making. It is the 43-country European Conference of Postal and Telecommunications Administrations (CEPT) and its policy-making arm, the European Radio Communications Committee, which are responsible for preparing European positions at conferences like WRC 2000 - and not the EU executive.

The Commission's proposals will only carry enough political weight to be taken seriously at the conference if they win the support of the Union's 15 governments when they are discussed by telecoms ministers at a meeting on 2 May. However, sources say this is unlikely to be a problem as there are few differences between the stance taken by CEPT and the Commission on the key issues.

The EU is preparing for battle with the US over key negotiations on the future of Europe's proposed global navigation satellite system and a slate of other state-of-the-art radio, television and telecoms services.