are waiting for the European Union to reach a common position on the situation.
Starlink applied to the Italian authorities in order to gain access to the E-band spectrum in order to boost communications between its three ground stations that are in Italy, including its satellite network, two years ago, two sources told Reuters who are familiar with the matter.
However, the application has not been reported previously. The requirement for the access to the E-band frequencies in Italy signals the satellite broadband company’s push for the capitalisation of their first-mover role in the low-orbit space-based telecommunications sector that took place against lagging European and US rivals.
Starlink, part of Musk’s SpaceX space company, has been offering its service in Italy since 2021. The company operates a network of thousands of low-orbit satellites and is emerging as one of the most dominant forces in the global sector.
A source even said that Starlink had also applied for acces to frequencies between 71.0 and 76.0 gigahertz and 81.0 to 86.0 gigahertz, to which the satellite broadband operator was also granted conditional access in the US last year.
The E-band spectrum is also managed by Italy’s minister of industry as well as the minister of defense, needing to authorize the use of some of those frequencies.
Addressing lawmakers on satellite spectrum policy on Wednesday, Massimo Bitonci, the Industry Junior Minister, reported that Rome is taking a cautious approach to E-band in the absence of a common stance on the issue at the European Union level.
Bitonci also added “The E-band is not yet subject to harmonization decisions ... This prompts us to wait for EU-wide coordination,” without needing to mention Starlink’s request nor indicating when this situation could take place.
It is also worth mentioning that as of this January, Starlink had about 55,000 customers from Italy. Antonio Sassoon, a former engineering professor from the La Sapienza University said that "E-band is little tapped, and consequently any risk of Starlink interfering with other operators is low".
He also added in an interview with Reuters “Having access to those frequencies would increase Starlink capacity to serve more customers and would also give Starlink a potential first mover advantage, because any newcomer would have to coordinate with Starlink to offer its service”.
tarlink is also considering the construction of an additional ground station in the northern part of Italy in order to meet the demand that is growing from their services. Even more so, Italy is also in talks with Starlink for the possibility of the network company to provide them with a communication system that can be used by diplomats, military, and government officials that are operating in risky areas across the globe.
The projects are, however, under criticism from the opposite political parties.
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