[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 26 (Thursday, March 9, 2000)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E274]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




              IN SUPPORT OF INTERNATIONAL SATELLITE REFORM

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. PETER DEUTSCH

                               of florida

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, March 9, 2000

  Mr. DEUTSCH. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to rise in strong support of 
international satellite reform, S. 376, the Open-Market Reorganization 
for the Betterment of International Telecommunications Act (ORBIT). I 
commend Chairman Bliley and Congressmen Markey, Dingell, Oxley, and 
Tauzin for their hard work in reaching a balanced compromise with 
Senate conferees. This bill has bipartisan support in the Congress and 
support from the United States commercial international satellite 
industry, as well as the largest U.S. users of international satellite 
services.
  S. 376 will lead to more competition and eliminate the unfair market 
advantages long-held by intergovernmental treaty organizations. These 
entities have been dominant since the United States established an 
industry model in 1962 that relied on intergovernmental entities to 
provide commercial satellite services. Our 1962 Communications 
Satellite Act has been overtaken by amazing technological changes, 
which have created a vibrant private international satellite industry. 
We must assure that Intelsat and Inmarsat privatize in a manner that 
will put all industry players on an equal footing and not permit their 
intergovernmental legacy to distort competition.
  Accordingly, ORBIT establishes explicit criteria for the 
privatization of Intelsat and Inmarsat. The FCC is directed to use 
these criteria in determining whether or not to allow the private 
successors and affiliates of Intelsat and Inmarsat access to the United 
States market. These criteria for judging and privatization, coupled 
with the market access restrictions if the criteria are not met, are 
very important to provide clear incentives to Intelsat, Inmarsat, and 
their spin-offs.
  Intelsat, with its 143 member nations, is comprised largely of state 
telephone companies that control access to their national markets. They 
have a history of denying market access to U.S. companies that seek to 
compete with Intelsat. This bill will help open those markets. One of 
the provisions in S. 376 that is essential to this market-opening goal 
prohibits exclusive arrangements with foreign countries. It even-
handedly prohibits any satellite operator serving the United States 
from enjoying the exclusive right to handle telecommunications traffic 
to or from the U.S. and any other country. The intent is to prevent a 
satellite operator from benefitting from exclusivity in any foreign 
market, no matter how it derives its exclusivity. Thus, all satellite 
operators will have a fair opportunity to provide global service.
  I urge my colleagues to join in supporting this overdue reform of 
international satellite policy. This legislation will bring the full 
benefits of competition to consumers and it will begin to open access 
to foreign markets for United States companies.

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