**Before the**

united states department of commerce

National Telecommunications and Information Administration

and the

United states Department of Agriculture

rural utilities service

+----------------------------------+---+------------------------------+
| In the Matter of:                | ) | **Docket No.                 |
|                                  |   | 090309298-9299-01**          |
| American Recovery and            | ) |                              |
| Reinvestment Act of 2009         |   |                              |
| Broadband Initiatives Joint      | ) |                              |
| Request for Information          |   |                              |
|                                  | ) |                              |
|                                  |   |                              |
|                                  | ) |                              |
|                                  |   |                              |
|                                  | ) |                              |
+----------------------------------+---+------------------------------+

# **COMMENTS OF SKYTERRA COMMUNICATIONS, INC.**

SkyTerra Communications, Inc. ("SkyTerra") submits these comments
regarding implementation of the Broadband Technology Opportunities
Program ("BTOP") of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of
2009[^1] in response to the Joint Request for Information issued by NTIA
and the Rural Utilities Services ("RUS").[^2] SkyTerra urges NTIA to
allocate at least 20 percent of the funds made available in each BTOP
grant round to meeting the special needs of public safety users, and to
give priority to projects that would provide broadband technology that
can be leveraged across public safety networks nationwide.

**Background**

SkyTerra operates a North America-wide satellite network that provides
mobile communications in rural and remote areas and in emergency
situations where no other service is as reliably available. SkyTerra
currently provides two-way radio (push-to-talk) and mobile data services
to federal, state, and local agencies involved in public safety and
emergency response operations. These include, among others, the Federal
Emergency Management Agency, the Department of Justice, the Federal
Bureau of Investigation, and numerous other local and state fire,
police, and emergency response agencies. These public safety entities
depend on SkyTerra's system for reliable, redundant, and ubiquitous
services during daily operations and emergencies. Additionally, through
its Satellite Mutual Aid Radio Talkgroup (SMART) program, SkyTerra
provides nationwide and regional programs for interoperable public
safety communications that operate on the SkyTerra satellite network.
These talkgroups enable critical, interoperable communications among
public safety officials from various departments and agencies. SkyTerra
is now preparing to deploy two next-generation satellites that will
enable the provision of mobile broadband service to handheld devices.
The FCC has authorized SkyTerra to reuse its satellite spectrum to
operate an ancillary terrestrial wireless network that will provide
additional capacity in areas of higher demand.

SkyTerra has joined in comments being filed separately today by the MSS
& ATC Coalition (the "Coalition"). The Coalition's comments urge NTIA
and RUS to determine that for mobile services coverage area is at least
as important as nominal speeds, to favor public safety grant
applications that advance national public safety broadband network
policy objectives, and to find that projects to deploy dual-mode
satellite/terrestrial mobile devices are eligible for Recovery Act
funding assistance. SkyTerra incorporates the Coalition's comments by
reference and submits the following additional perspective for NTIA's
consideration.

**Discussion**

Improving "access to, and use of, broadband service by public safety
agencies" is one of five equally important purposes Congress established
for the BTOP.[^3] As such, NTIA should allocate at least 20 percent of
funds available in each round of grants to this purpose. When evaluating
proposals that would improve access to and use of broadband by public
safety agencies, NTIA should favor projects that address the unique set
of challenges public safety agencies face in the deployment and use of
broadband networks. Factors NTIA should consider include:

-   Interoperability. Public safety agencies routinely provide mutual
    aid across agency lines and geographic boundaries. Interoperability
    of devices, networks, services, and applications among agencies is
    critically important to public safety users, and NTIA should support
    proposals that would facilitate the highest degree of
    interoperability among public safety networks.

-   Mobility. Public safety agencies rely on mobile communications
    links, whether provided by terrestrial wireless, satellite networks,
    or both. Many or most public safety users are mobile, working
    outdoors or in vehicles at least a portion of the work day, and they
    are frequently called to respond to emergencies beyond the reach of
    commercial networks. In selecting projects proposing to improve
    access to and use of broadband by public safety agencies, NTIA
    should give priority to proposals that would facilitate the greatest
    coverage of mobile broadband service to the largest number of public
    safety users.

-   Resiliency. As Hurricane Katrina showed, disasters that trigger the
    need for emergency response can disable or destroy both commercial
    and public safety communications infrastructure when it is needed
    most. NTIA should prioritize public safety funding proposals that
    would improve the reliability and resiliency of public safety
    broadband communications.

-   Network management and applications. The full capacity of broadband
    to improve public safety communications cannot be realized without
    significant investment in the development and deployment of tools
    and applications that meet the unique needs of public safety. "Off
    the shelf" network management tools and applications optimized for
    commercial networks are unlikely to meet the unique demands of
    public safety agencies. NTIA should favor proposals that advance
    public safety-specific technologies that are based on open
    architecture principles. Doing so will permit public safety agencies
    not only to adopt common and interoperable network management tools
    and applications, but also to enhance and extend those capabilities
    to meet their unique needs.

Public safety agencies need broadband networks that are mobile,
interoperable, and resilient. To stimulate adoption and use of broadband
by cash-strapped public safety agencies that already have narrowband
networks in place, NTIA should support development and deployment of
broadband technologies that provide powerful and compelling new features
and applications tailored to the special requirements of public safety
agencies. Simply deploying an IP network and porting existing services
(such as voice communications or rudimentary polling applications) to an
IP layer does not add value and will not stimulate broadband adoption.
IP links are only as valuable as the communications tools and
applications they enable.

The Recovery Act permits NTIA to provide funding to any entity that "the
Assistant Secretary finds by rule to be in the public interest."[^4]
NTIA's rules should state that it is in the public interest for
applicants proposing to meet the special requirements of public safety
agencies to be eligible to receive BTOP grants.

The available funding cannot be expected to fully achieve all five broad
objectives of the BTOP program established in the Recovery Act, so it is
appropriate for NTIA to apply BTOP funds to projects that offer
"credible, functional and scalable models for accelerating the
deployment of broadband."[^5] SkyTerra believes that investment properly
directed at solving the non-recurring deployment and integration
challenges of public safety broadband communications can stimulate
demand for and accelerate adoption of broadband service by public safety
agencies more than funding for location-specific infrastructure can.
Such investment can extend the benefits of BTOP funding to all public
safety agencies, including those that do not directly receive BTOP
grants. Accordingly, when selecting public safety projects for funding,
NTIA should give priority to projects that (i) would provide network
management tools and applications tailored to public safety requirements
and built on open architecture principles that permit individual
agencies to further customize and extend capabilities; (ii) facilitate
interoperability of networks, applications, and devices among public
safety networks; (iii) enable first responders to have reliable service
in the largest possible geographic area; (iv) enhance the resiliency of
public safety networks; and (v) improve functionality and lower overall
deployment costs for future public safety network deployments.

> Respectfully submitted,
>
> SKYTERRA COMMUNICATIONS, INC.

+-----------------------------------+----------------------------------+
| [/s/Bruce D. Jacobs]{.underline}  | [/s/Gary M. Epstein]{.underline} |
|                                   |                                  |
| Bruce D. Jacobs                   | Gary M. Epstein                  |
|                                   |                                  |
| John K. Hane                      | Executive Vice President of Law  |
|                                   | and Regulation                   |
| **PILLSBURY WINTHROP**            |                                  |
|                                   | **SKYTERRA COMMUNICATIONS,       |
| **SHAW PITTMAN LLP**              | INC.**                           |
|                                   |                                  |
| 2300 N Street, NW                 | 10802 Parkridge Boulevard        |
|                                   |                                  |
| Washington, DC 20037-1128         | Reston, Virginia 20191           |
|                                   |                                  |
| \(202\) 663-8000                  | \(703\) 390-2700                 |
+-----------------------------------+----------------------------------+

April 13, 2009

[^1]: Pub. L. No. 111-5, 123 Stat. 115 (2009) ("Recovery Act"). The
    Recovery Act directs the National Telecommunications and Information
    Agency ("NTIA"), in consultation with the Federal Communications
    Commission ("FCC"), to establish the BTOP. Recovery Act, Title VI §
    6001(a).

[^2]: Joint Request for Information and Notice of Public Meetings, 74
    Fed. Reg. 10,716-21 (Department of Commerce Mar. 12, 2009) (the
    "Joint Request").

[^3]: Recovery Act Title VI § 6001(b)(4).

[^4]: Recovery Act, Title VI, § 6001(e)(1)(c).

[^5]: Testimony of Mark G. Seifert, Senior Advisor to the Assistant
    Secretary, NTIA, before Subcommittee on Communications, Technology,
    and the Internet, Committee on Energy and Commerce, U.S. House of
    Representatives, Hearing on "Oversight of the American Recovery and
    Reinvestment Act of 2009: Broadband," April 2, 2009.