SpaceX pushes FCC fight

SpaceX is pressing the Federal Communications Commission to move now against European satellite rules it says could shut U.S. operators out of the market. (pcmag.com) The company made that case in comments filed April 1 in GN Docket No. 26-48, the Federal Communications Commission proceeding on “satellite market access reciprocity.” The agency opened that docket on March 2 and set April 1 for comments and April 16 for replies. (fcc.gov) (docs.fcc.gov) The fight is about whether foreign satellite companies can sell service in the United States if their home governments make it harder for U.S. rivals to operate there. Federal Communications Commission Chairman Brendan Carr said in March that the European Union’s draft Space Act and Digital Networks Act were among the “new barriers” facing U.S. companies abroad. (docs.fcc.gov) (pcmag.com) The European Commission proposed the EU Space Act on June 25, 2025 as a bloc-wide rulebook for safety, resilience and sustainability in space. Industry lawyers and trade publications say the draft would also reshape how non-EU operators get access to the European market. (commission.europa.eu) (cooley.com) Europe is also building its own secure satellite system, IRIS², under a 2023 regulation with a budget of about €2.4 billion for 2023 through 2027. The program is meant to provide secure government communications and commercial broadband while backing what European institutions call “strategic autonomy.” (eur-lex.europa.eu) (connectivity.esa.int) That puts SpaceX’s lobbying inside a wider commercial scramble over who gets to serve customers as low-Earth-orbit constellations spread. The Federal Communications Commission said roughly one-fourth of the more than 200 satellite systems it has approved for U.S. market access are licensed by foreign administrations. (satellitetoday.com) (docs.fcc.gov) Not everyone wants Washington to answer Europe with restrictions of its own. Other satellite companies and trade groups told the Federal Communications Commission this month that the agency should move slowly because satellite networks are cross-border by design and new barriers could hurt competition and users in the United States. (broadbandbreakfast.com) (gtlaw.com) The docket is now past its initial comment deadlines, and the next step is whether the Federal Communications Commission turns the record into a policy shift or leaves the warning in place. SpaceX’s message is that waiting for Europe to finish writing its rules would already be too late. (docs.fcc.gov) (pcmag.com)