ITU chief expects WRC-27 D2D regulatory framework for mobile bands

Establishing a unified regulatory framework is critical for scaling satellite-to-handset services without causing harmful interference across terrestrial networks. While SpaceX and others have secured early national authorizations, the lack of a global treaty creates long-term operational risks for the 151 mobile operators currently investing in non-terrestrial partnerships. For the streaming ecosystem, this satellite spectrum expansion determines whether satellite can reliably bridge the 4% coverage gap for data-heavy services in uneconomic regions. Watch for the ITU Plenipotentiary Conference in November 2026 to signal the ITU's future enforcement posture.

The ITU's push toward a WRC-27 framework for direct-to-device services builds on years of preparatory work within Study Group 5 and Working Party 5D, which handle IMT spectrum identification. Mario Maniewicz, who has led the Radiocommunication Bureau since 2019, oversaw the WRC-23 outcomes that allocated additional mid-band spectrum for IMT and set the agenda items for WRC-27, including the question of whether satellite-to-mobile operations can coexist with terrestrial networks in bands below 3 GHz. The GSMA has been a vocal proponent of regulatory clarity, with its spectrum team arguing that early harmonization reduces the risk of fragmented national approaches that could strand operator investments in NTN-capable handsets. On the commercial side, the pace of direct-to-device partnerships has accelerated well beyond the 151 operators cited in this story. SpaceX's Starlink Direct to Cell service launched commercially in the United States and New Zealand in early 2025, with over 400 Direct-to-Cell satellites in orbit and messaging available to T-Mobile and One NZ customers. The GSMA's own data indicates that more than 50 additional operator partnerships were announced between mid-2025 and mid-2026, spanning regions from Southeast Asia to Latin America, though most remain in trial or early commercial phases. This rapid uptake is precisely what makes the WRC-27 regulatory framework urgent: without internationally coordinated rules, operators risk deploying services that could face interference complaints or be forced to shut down when neighboring countries allocate the same bands differently. The technical coexistence question remains the most contentious element heading into WRC-27. Eric Fournier, who chairs ITU-R Study Group 5, has emphasized that sharing studies between satellite and terrestrial systems in the 700 MHz to 2.6 GHz range are still incomplete, and that protection criteria for incumbent mobile networks must be finalized before any regulatory framework can be adopted. The GSOA, representing geostationary satellite operators, has raised concerns that low-Earth-orbit constellations operating in mobile bands could create aggregate interference levels that exceed thresholds established for GSO systems, potentially complicating the regulatory picture further. These unresolved technical questions mean that while the political will for a WRC-27 outcome exists, the engineering groundwork may not be ready in time without significant acceleration of Study Group work over the next 12 months.