Intelsat - Ku Band - Privatizing Through Private Networks

Source: AD

Forensic Analysis of Private Networks - Intelsat - Virtual Tunnels - Marconi to Gilligan's Island

"There's a problem: it's a 30 year old conspiracy." -- 9/11 Commissioner Bob Kerrey

This is an informal inquiry based upon recent discussions of the Hawks Cafe, Captain Sherlock and Abel Danger (counterintelligence for the 'little people') association of forensic economic analysts related to satellites, private networks and the Ku-band frequency. Considering the quote above, for the first time in the history of human activity, this just might be the first thing a politician has said that can actually be accepted at face value.

In 1964, the International Telecommunications Satellite Consortium (Intelsat) resulted from the Communications Satellite Act (signed by U.S. President Kennedy in 1962) to provide global communications. To assist President Kennedy to bring about the organization of Intelsat, Newton N. Minow who served as Chairman of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) from March 2, 1961 to June 1, 1963, convinced Congress to pass satellite communications legislation. The International Telecommunications Satellite Consortium (Intelsat) was put into law by the Communications Satellite Act signed by U.S. President Kennedy in 1962. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) was first organized in 1934 as an independent agency of the United States Government.

President John F. Kennedy

Since Intelsat's inception under the Kennedy Administration and under Newton N. Minow's direction, it was organized as a treaty-based organization. Newton Minow visited America's space program and returned to Washington, informing Kennedy that: "Communications satellites will be much more important than sending man into space because they will send ideas into space. Ideas last longer than men." Even though the Communications Satellite Act was signed into law in 1962, Intelsat took effect in 1964 and from its inception controlled satellite communications up until July of 2001.

Giving this a few extra minutes of thought before we press on here, ideas really do have consequences: do those ideas possibly incorporate bringing down big buildings? Intelsat was set up as an intergovernmental consortium owning and managing a constellation of communications satellites that provided international broadcast services. Television programs like Gilligan's Island were probably broadcast to an international audience via the satellite Ku-band frequency.

On July 18, 2001, Intelsat the first global commercial communications satellite provider - was privatized, making a "historical transformation" from a treaty-based organization to a privately-held company. The newly-formed private company was called Intelsat Ltd.; today it has over 200 shareholders comprised of companies from more than 145 countries, representing most of the world's preeminent communications network operators.

As of 2007, Intelsat, Ltd. owned and operated a fleet of 51 communications satellites. Recently, in June 2007 BC Partners announced they had acquired 76 percent of Intelsat for about 3.75 billion euros. BC Partners is a private equity firm specializing in buyouts and acquisitions financing in Europe and the United States, with offices in New York, London, Paris and Hamburg, and total assets of $17 billion. BC Partners competes for buyouts and investment opportunities with other large cap private equity firms including Blackstone Group, CVC Capital Partners, Advent International and The Carlyle Group. As forensic economists, keep in mind exactly who these 'private interests' might be - and why these private equity groups constantly shuffle these holdings around in complex structures - as we explore the winding paths and dark pools of Gilligan's Island.

SATCOM Satellite (Satellite Communications)

Telecommunications: Market Developments in the Global Satellite Services Industry and the Implementation of the ORBIT Act

In 2000, the U.S. Congress passed the ORBIT Act, which was designed ostensibly "to help promote a more competitive global satellite services market." An exact explanation of ORBIT and what it was designed to do is described below:

In 2000, the Congress passed the Open-market Reorganization for the Betterment of International Telecommunications Act (ORBIT Act) to help promote a more competitive global satellite services market. The ORBIT Act called for the full privatization of INTELSAT, a former intergovernmental organization that provided international satellite services. In this testimony, GAO discusses (1) the impetus for the privatization of Intelsat as competition developed in the 1990s, (2) the extent to which the privatization steps required by the ORBIT Act have been implemented, and (3) whether access by global satellite companies to non-U.S. markets has improved since the enactment of the ORBIT Act.

After the Open-market Reorganization for the Betterment of International Telecommunications Act (ORBIT Act) was passed in 2000, Intelsat, Ltd. became a privately-held company. Before we continue explaining the consequences of this act, let's take a look back at how a visionary first conceived this new technology: sort of like how David Sarnoff at Marconi saw the future of the wireless telegraph and built RCA. It would appear that Arthur C. Clarke had a window into the future, and perceived how valuable and effective satellites would become.

In October 1945, celebrated author and inventor Arthur C. Clarke [who wrote 2001: A Space Odyssey, with Stanley Kubrick] publishes his article, "Extra-terrestrial Relays," in Wireless World, detailing his theory that three satellites positioned over each ocean region in geosynchronous orbit could provide global communications. These are the fundamentals by which Intelsat and all other geosynchronous satellites and systems were formed.

Alright: before it was privatized, Intelsat was contracted to perform a few projects. Some of you may be familiar with these projects:

On 20 July 1969, Intelsat transmits television images of the [alleged] moon landing around the world - a record 500 million television viewers worldwide see Neil Armstrong's first steps on the moon "Live via Intelsat." [2001: A Space Odyssey, by Stanley Kubrick and Arthur C. Clarke]

On 24 December 1974, the Direct Communications Link, or "Hot Line," is activated, connecting the White House and the Kremlin via the Intelsat system.

In August 1984, the United Nations signs an agreement calling for Intelsat to provide satellite capacity for United Nations peacekeeping and emergency relief activities.

In September 1988, continuing a 20-year tradition of Olympic broadcasts, Intelsat provides record-breaking television coverage of the Seoul Summer Olympics, using nine satellites to provide coverage to a worldwide audience of three billion people.

In the years since 1962 – when the Communications Satellite Act was passed and Intelsat was organized during the Kennedy Administration, with the effort of Newton N. Minow at the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) – there has been a gradual restructuring of nominally governmental organizations and treaty-based organizations into completely privatized corporations, many domiciled outside U.S. jurisdiction. Readers will already be familiar with this trend, through the example of the Senior Executive Service – created in 1979 as a private company interfacing between the federal U.S. civil service and top presidential appointees, and staffed by more than 7,000 professional bureaucrats who manage the United States Government. This trend continued with Intelsat, which was privatized in July 2001 and eventually sold off to various international private equity groups.

This privatization continued under the Clinton Administration when on March 17, 2000, President Clinton signed into law the Open-Market Reorganization for the Betterment of International Telecommunications (ORBIT) Act, Pub. L. 106-180. When this act was made into law [imagine passing laws for the creation of private interests regardless of the values those private interests may have or the consequences these laws have not party to those private interests] this legislation sought to "promote a fully competitive global market for satellite communications services for the benefit of consumers and providers of satellite services and equipment by fully privatizing the intergovernmental satellite organizations, INTELSAT and Inmarsat."

One of the consequences of this legislation going into full effect was that Intelsat, Ltd. created a subsidiary called INTELSAT LLC ; Intelsat Bermuda Ltd.; Intelsat U.K. Ltd. (FCC_01-183). So if you're following the historical trend here, the United States went from having satellites placed in orbit for broadcasting to benefit the American people under the Communications Satellite Act in 1962 as a treaty-based organization, and remember, Newton N. Minow described television as " a wasteland", to a completely privatized corporation, one being a subsidiary now domiciled in Bermuda. [PDF Format]

Keeping in mind all this privatization going on since 1962, it would appear now Americans are paying those same private equity structured satellite corporations for the same service they once enjoyed back in the 1960s and 1970s at a cheaper cost before the FCC "found Intelsat to be in compliance with all of the ORBIT Act privatization requirements", which means Intelsat LLC now provides direct-to-home, direct broadcast satellite, Ka- and V-band satellite services, and Ku-Band services among others with one operational headquarters in Bermuda. How do you like being stranded on Gilligan's Island now?

"Hiya, Professor. What are you doing?"

"Why Gilligan, I'm trying to figure out how to trigger cat bonds through the Ku-band satellite based system and blame it on terrorists...it's going to be a chronicle of our adventures on the island... I think it's a book people will want to buy, don't you?"

FCC Finds Intelsat To Be In Compliance With All ORBIT Act Privatization Requirements

PEMBROKE, Bermuda -- On April 15, the U.S. Federal Communications Commission announced that it has found Intelsat to be in compliance with all of the privatization requirements of the ORBIT Act. The FCC found that Intelsat has substantially diluted the ownership of its former signatories and thus, the FCC determined, Intelsat may now provide direct-to-home, direct broadcast satellite, Ka- and V-band satellite services, among others.

Ku-Band (usually within the 12 to 18 GHz Frequency)

If anyone has been following the forensic economic analysis of Hawks Cafe, Captain Sherlock and Abel Danger (counter-intelligence for the 'little people'), you might have come across two terms referred to often in the discussions and at this blog, they are 'Ku band' and 'backhaul', which are also described in the glossary. First, a few definitions for clarification and if you require further technical explanations be sure and go to the hyperlinks provided.

The Ku band is a portion of the electromagnetic spectrum in the microwave range of frequencies. This symbol refers to "K-under" with the same meaning, the Ku band is the band directly below the K-band. In radar applications, it ranges from 12 to 18 GHz according to the formal definition of radar frequency band nomenclature in IEEE Standard 521-2002.

Ku band is primarily used for satellite communications, most notably NASA's Tracking Data Relay Satellite used for both space shuttle and ISS communications. Ku band satellites are also used for backhauls and particularly for satellite from remote locations back to a television network's studio for editing and broadcasting.

In a hierarchical telecommunications network the backhaul portion of the network comprises the intermediate links between the core network, or backbone, of the network and the small subnetworks at the "edge" of the entire hierarchical network. For example, while cell phones communicating with a single cell tower constitute a local subnetwork, the connection between the cell tower and the rest of the world begins with a backhaul link to the core of the telephone company's network (via a point of presence). Used also to transmit data back to a television studio for real time editing of broadcasts.

On May 24, 2001, the Federal Communications Commissions in a Memorandum Opinion and Order and Authorization released on May, 29, 2001, addressed Intelsat’s request to form a subsidiary and in this application it is stated that “Intelstat LLC’s purpose of forming a private corporation was to obtain authority to further construct, launch and operate C-band and Ku-band satellites that form a global communications in geostationary orbit.” Without going into a lot of very complex legal terminology describing these complex corporate structures, here are a few comments from the National Telecommunications and Information Administration document called COMMENTS OF INTELSAT that might further clarify what Intelsat LLC was set up to operate as. Understand too, that this would have been cleared by the FCC:

In its comments filed May 8, 2000 for purposes of the NTIA's second report to Congress pursuant to the Anti-Bribery Act, INTELSAT noted that its subsidiary, Intelsat LLC, had filed an application with the Federal Communications Commission ("FCC" or "Commission") for authority to operate INTELSAT's 17 existing C-band and Ku-band satellites, to further construct, launch and operate 10 additional satellites, and to relocate, among 22 orbital locations, certain currently operating satellites ("Application"). In August 2000, the Commission granted the Application, effective upon asset transfer and conditioned upon a finding that INTELSAT's privatization is pro-competitive as required by the ORBIT Act.

With respect to that Application, Intelsat LLC has made several filings to the FCC concerning its privatization plans and progress. Among the most recent was a December 18, 2000 filing responding to the Commission's request for "supplemental information describing fully all aspects of the decision of the Assembly to privatize INTELSAT." In that filing, Intelsat LLC noted that in November 2000, the 25th Assembly of Parties had made a final commitment to privatize INTELSAT by July 18, 2001 and described the decisions taken by that Assembly of Parties and by the Board of Governors in December 2000 with respect to INTELSAT's privatization. In addition, Intelsat LLC explained how INTELSAT's privatization satisfies the requirements of the ORBIT Act. INTELSAT will not repeat those comments herein, but instead incorporates them herein by reference.

To present an image that would best demonstrate what it must look like in earth's orbit up there between 200 and 300 miles altitude, is the following picture. Realizing it's a bit of an exaggeration, still, one wonders what all that traffic up there is communicating and more importantly based on our analysis of 9/11, are there 'private networks' being transmitted through the Ku-band the vast majority of people don't know anything about. After looking at this picture, which isn't too far off, go to this hyperlink where you will find an entire listing by satellite name, owner and country, Ku specifications, degree of declination, MAX EIRP (Effective Isotropic Radiated Power) and comments for each satellite.

The thought signals might have been generated and communicated through one of these Ku-band satellites on 9/11 is intriguing, no? From this list alone there are about 90 satellites geo-orbiting in the Western Hemisphere most of them are dedicated to 'consumer video.' And remember, this says nothing of the equal number of satellites in orbit that can be confirmed by the chart at the hyperlink just given orbiting in the Eastern Hemisphere.

Earth's orbit saturated with satellites (some of them Ku-Band satellites)

An experiment was conducted in Japan called Ku-Band Long Distance Site-Diversity (SD) Characteristics Using New Measuring System [PDF FILE] discussed in IEEE Transactions on Antennas and Propagation, Vol. One, 52, No. 6, June 2004. On page 1482 of this discussion, it was found through extensive experimentation by what was called a 'propagation experiment' to determine rain attenuation (how rain effects Ku-band transmissions in certain GHz Frequencies). In 20GHz 'propagation experiments' conducted in Japan over several cities during rain off an NTT satellite, it became clear that "the Ku-Band and Ka Band suffer from heavy rain attenuation and adequate techniques to counteract rain attenuation should be considered." If memory serves us right looking up into the beautiful blue skies in New York on 9/11 there wasn't a cloud in the sky.

Folks are probably asking about now considering the charts just given, what is transmitted over the Ku-Band? Well, basically the following:

There are various types of services on Ku-band. Some of the services include NBC, news feeds, Satellite News gathering mobile truck uplinks, educational networks, teleconferences, sports backhauls, various other backhauls, international programming, business networks, Single Channel Per Carrier analog audio transmissions and FM Squared audio services.

To give you an idea as to just how important and extensive the use is of the Ku-band link- up through satellites is for providing you with reruns of Gilligan's Island (probably pornography, snuff films?) for example, the space shuttles are also equipped with a Ku-band antenna for receiving this same satellite signal. Now that we've uncovered all this kind of makes people wonder about the Columbia (STS-107) doesn't it?

STS-107 blazing a hot Ku-band trail across the skies on February 1, 2003?

And just in case anyone doesn't want to miss any reruns of Gilligan's Island, a link is provided for you here if you are interested in purchasing a Ku-band antenna. Note: One optional use of the Ku-band would work well with drone aircraft, Boeing uniterruptable auto pilot and patented GRS 11 Gyrochips.

Equipment configuration of the Ku-band antenna on board the Space Shuttle Atlantis

To see just how invasive satellites will become in the future a new type of speed camera which can use satellites to measure average speed over long distances are being tested in Britain. Geostationary satellites over Britain can read license plates and if you are caught speeding a bill will show up in the post. I suspect why all this science and technology coming out of Britain, which is duplicated in the United States, is because London is where the money is to fund all this science. The biggest benefactor of science of course are governments just like it has been with global warming 'science.'
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Source: Telegraph

Satellites could track motorists from space if trials prove successful

New speed cameras trap motorists from space

Telegraph -- The cameras, which combine number plate reading technology with a global positioning satellite receiver, are similar to those used in roadworks.

The AA said it believed the new system could cover a network of streets as opposed to a straight line, and was "probably geared up to zones in residential areas."

The Home Office is testing the cameras at two sites, one in Southwark, London, and the other A374 between Antony and Torpoint in Cornwall.

Privatizing for private networks

Understanding how networks function and how they are structured is actually a very fascinating undertaking and what better way to begin understanding these networks than to look at the following Muckety diagram with Northwestern University in Chicago at the center. At the center of not only the discussions within the 'network' of the Hawks Cafe, Captain Sherlock and Abel Danger association of forensic economists, but how all networks are organized and operate, and in many cases reverting to private interests that exploit these networks for their own purposes and objectives.

The implication here is these private networks are structured in a way more often than not to reflect the 'values' of the entities represented by these networks. So that this discussion may continue with an anticipated follow-up post, the following diagram has been included which might take this discussion from beyond merely an informal inquiry into a further forensic economic analysis of private networks - Intelsat - virtual tunnels - Marconi to Gilligan's Island.

Newton N. Minow - Northwestern Univ. - Henry S. Bienen