Malta urged to introduce mobile satellite services

The European Commission is insisting with the Maltese authorities to put in place without further delay legislation which will enable the island to introduce Mobile Satellite Services (MSS) as from May.

According to the Commission, despite the May 2011 deadline, 21 member states, including Malta, have not yet put in place the legislative measures necessary to allow the pan-EU deployment of mobile satellite services that could be used for high-speed internet, mobile television and radio or emergency communications to EU consumers and businesses.

According to the timetable agreed by a Decision of the European Parliament and the EU's Council of Ministers in 2008, MSS should be deployed in all EU member states by May 2011 at the latest. But, more than twenty months after the Commission selected two operators to provide such pan-European services, the majority of EU member states, including the UK, France and Germany, have not yet adopted all the national rules needed to facilitate MSS deployment.

Commission Vice-President Nellie Kroes has now sent a letter to all the member states concerned urging them to remove remaining legal uncertainties, such as licence fees, and to put in place all necessary implementation measures without further delay.

“Member states should urgently take all measures necessary to allow the introduction of mobile satellite services throughout the EU. Mobile satellite services have an important role to play in providing innovative services to businesses and citizens across Europe, including in rural or remote areas, and in meeting our Digital Agenda targets of making broadband available to everyone in Europe,” she said.

In 2008, the EU approved legislation to create a single selection and authorisation process for mobile satellite services at EU level to facilitate the emergence of a Single Market for mobile satellite services and maximise its potential, to the benefit of consumers and businesses. As part of this process, in 2009 the Commission selected Inmarsat Ventures Limited and Solaris Mobile Limited as the pan-EU mobile satellite service operators.

A mobile satellite service (MSS) is a service provided by a satellite system which communicates with portable terminals on the ground, which can be carried by a person or mounted on a ship or car. Such systems allow high-speed communication throughout Europe between satellites and, for instance, handheld mobile terminals comparable to smart mobile phones or portable computers.

Mobile satellite services themselves can range from high-speed internet access to mobile television or radio, and public protection and disaster relief. Another well-known example is portable satellite telephones that allow phone calls to be made and received anywhere in the world.