en.Wedoany.com Reported - A White House official stated unequivocally at the ASCEND space conference in Las Vegas on May 19 that the United States will enter the 2027 World Radiocommunication Conference (WRC-27) "better prepared than ever before." Ryan Baasch, Deputy Director of the White House National Economic Council, emphasized during a panel discussion, "The level of focus this administration is placing on winning at the WRC is probably the highest it's ever been for the United States. Our number one goal is to ensure that U.S. industry can thrive after the conference." The conference is scheduled to take place in Shanghai, China, from October to November 2027.

U.S. officials revealed that the country will finalize its positions on all agenda items well in advance of the conference. Charlie Powell, Assistant Director for Space and Spectrum Affairs at the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, stated, "For the first time, the United States will complete its position development on all agenda items before the WRC convenes. We must finish early so we can share and jointly promote core U.S. positions with allies and partner nations." Powell also noted that Shanghai, as the host city, raises certain security concerns, and the government is still evaluating how to handle issues such as delegation size and security. However, he stressed, "If other nations hijack these multilateral forums and tilt standards in ways that disadvantage U.S. industry, the U.S. government and industry will suffer significant harm."

The importance of WRC-27 to the space industry is evident from the agenda structure alone. Alex Epshteyn, Head of Spectrum Architecture and Strategy at Amazon's Project Kuiper, pointed out at the same conference that "over 80% of the WRC-27 agenda is directly or indirectly related to non-geostationary orbit (NGSO) satellite systems." Amazon's priorities at the conference include securing more satellite spectrum in the V-band and the 17.3 to 17.7 GHz band, while also pushing for revisions to Equivalent Power Flux Density (EPFD) rules to allow NGSO systems to operate at higher power levels without causing interference to geostationary satellites. Kim Baum, Head of Regulatory Affairs at Astranis, expressed a desire for more Ku-band uplink spectrum. Danielle Pineres, Associate General Counsel at Planet, is focused on protecting Earth exploration-satellite service spectrum in parts of the X-band. Manny Shar, Senior Director of Growth at lunar rover developer Astrolab, revealed that the company is tracking a WRC-27 agenda item that would permit the use of specific spectrum bands on the lunar surface.

To effectively safeguard U.S. interests at the conference, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has established a systematic domestic coordination mechanism. The FCC completed the rechartering and member recruitment for the WRC Advisory Committee (WAC-27) at the end of 2025. The new advisory committee features four Informal Working Groups (IWGs), covering maritime, aeronautical, and radar services (IWG-1, chaired by a Boeing representative), mobile and fixed services (IWG-2, chaired by a Verizon representative), fixed-satellite service and regulatory affairs (IWG-3, chaired by an Amazon representative), and mobile-satellite and space science services (IWG-4). The advisory committee completed its initial recommendation report in February 2026, after which the FCC promptly issued a public notice seeking comments, entering an interagency coordination process with NTIA and the State Department to lay the groundwork for forming official U.S. position papers.

U.S. spectrum preparation is not limited to WRC agenda items; domestic spectrum release actions are also advancing concurrently. The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) recently launched the Spectrum.gov website to publicly share progress on 6G spectrum research and WRC-27 preparations. Pursuant to the "Winning the Race to 6G" memorandum signed by President Trump last December, NTIA is concurrently advancing spectrum studies in four bands, with the 7 GHz band (7125 to 7400 MHz) making the most progress. Technical work is underway, with a final report planned for submission this December. T-Mobile has received FCC authorization to test Nokia's experimental prototype equipment in this band, and Ericsson has also completed its first pre-standard over-the-air test in the band. For the 2.7 GHz, 4.4 GHz, and 1.6 GHz bands, NTIA is similarly advancing relocation plans and feasibility assessments.

A summary from the TPI Winter Spectrum Series Workshop this February clearly identified that the U.S. faces a triple challenge: diplomatic, logistical, and strategic. Three former officials who participated in U.S. WRC preparations assessed that the lack of a head of delegation nominee is a disadvantage, and that the presidential memorandum's unprecedented focus on agenda item 1.7 could lead to "tunnel vision," leaving the U.S. underprepared on satellite issues, EPFD reform, and lunar spectrum matters, thereby weakening its negotiating leverage in the conference's "trade of interests." Furthermore, China's influence as the host nation on the conference proceedings and substance also sparked discussion. Participating experts agreed that regional diplomacy is the strongest predictor of success, and that the U.S. needs to lock in regional positions as quickly as possible at the Inter-American Telecommunication Commission meeting while intensifying bilateral engagement with allies.

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