CASBAA representatives joined other stakeholders in Pacific Island at an ITU-sponsored “Forum on the Future of C-Band” in Fiji on November 1, 2013.
CASBAA’s consultant for the Pacific Islands, Maui Sanford, and Intelsat’s Washington-based Principle Regulatory Specialist, Annette Purves, spoke about the importance of satellites for communications in the Pacific and the need to preserve C-band spectrum for satellite use. Patrick Masambu, representing ITSO (and IMSO), himself a former regulator of Uganda, encouraged the various administrations to make their concerns regarding the criticality of C-band especially for the Pacific Island nations heard at the ITU.
Fiji-TV spokesman Clint Ah Sam told the forum about the signal loss to Fiji-TV’s customers, when a broadband wireless (WiMax) system fired up in C-band frequencies, making TV reception impossible in many areas.
Pictured, at the forum are (from left):
Maui Sanford – CASBAA Consultant for the Pacific Islands, Ivan Fong – President of the Pacific Islands Telecommunication Association (PITA), Annette Purves – Principal Regulatory Specialist for Intelsat, and member of the CASBAA WAG, Joaquin Restrepo – Head of Outreach and Publications, ITU Radiocommunications Bureau, Fred Christopher – Manager, PITA