The Curse of S-band

摘要

The satellite telecommunications sector has enjoyed an impressive run in recent years, racking up robust profits and expanding while the global economy was contracting. But when it comes to exploiting S-band frequencies, this highly capable and dynamic industry is the gang that couldn't shoot straight.rnThe "S" in S-band - a swath of spectrum in the Z-4 gigahertz range traditionally used by governments - might as well stand for snakebitten. Just about anyone who has dabbled in it since the early 1990s has run aground in one way or another. Even now, with the satellite industry mature and having learned some harsh lessons from the late 1990s telecom collapse, S-band stubbornly remains a Death Valley for investors, a riddle for regulators and a bonanza for lawyers.