1-1- CRC: Communications Regulatory Commission;

1-2- CRA: Communications Regulatory Authority;

1-3- Satellite network: Satellite network encompasses three parts: 1- space segment including all or part of one or more satellites consisting of GSO[1] and Non-GSO satellites (s) that are located in a specific orbital position; 2- ground segment including TT&C[2], SCC[3], MCC[4], hubs, gateways to control and manage payload and satellite platforms; 3-feeder link earth stations and fixed or mobile earth stations. These three parts are inter-related.

1-4- ITU: International Telecommunication Union

 

Article 2- Requirements for Satellite Operator

2.1 Satellite operators shall comply with the ITU Radio Regulations at the time of establishment of the satellite network. CRA confirmation is necessary at the time of establishment or before the provision of services in the territory of I. R. of Iran;

2-2- Satellite operator is obliged to submit to CRA the satellite specifications as it is registered in ITU as well as other complementary information, as required. All frequency assignments must be in accordance with Table of National Frequency Allocation of I. R. of Iran.

2-3- Satellite operator is obliged to submit to CRA the map of geographical areas under its coverage, technical specifications of fixed or mobile, transmitting and receiving earth stations which have the ability to communicate with their network, Service Level Agreement (SLA) in all different parts of the country, as well as mutual electromagnetic protection with other transceivers all over the country;

2-4- The applicant for provision of satellite services in the I. R. of Iran must submit to CRA, the qualitative and technical specifications of its services in order to obtain CRA confirmation.  

Article 3- Services

Providing fixed and mobile telephony services, SMS[5], mobile and fixed internet, broadcasting, data transmission and faxing to fixed, portable or mobile satellite terminals based on satellite communications;

Note 1: safety, amateur satellite, metrological satellite, earth exploration satellite, radio astronomy, radio navigation, and space research services (as defined in Article 1 of ITU Radio Regulations) are not the subject to this Decision;

Note 2: The provision of radio and television satellite broadcasting services requires the approval of both Communications Regulatory Authority (CRA) and Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB).

Article 4- Monopoly and Anti-Competitive Behavior

Any anti-competitive conduct by satellite operator is prohibited, whether conducted alone, or, with participation of contracting licensed Satellite Access Provider (SAP) or other satellite operators.

Article 5- Conditions for Providing Services

5-1- Provision of space services which are the subject of this Decision by the satellite operators are only allowed through a contract with license holders which are allowed to provide satellite access;

5-2- The satellite operator is obliged to provide, online, the authorized license holder for provision of satellite access, with X Detail Records (XDR) of the subscribers of contracting authorized license holder to provide satellite access;

5-3- Online access to X Detail Records (XDR) and also identity information of the subscribers whose registration have been done outside I. R. of Iran shall be given to contracting authorized licensed SAP by the satellite operator, at the time of the subscriber’s presence in the I. R. of Iran.

5-4- The satellite operator is obliged to create an international internet gateway in the territory of the Islamic Republic of Iran or to adopt alternative solutions agreed by CRA;

5-5- The satellite operator is obliged to observe the limits of electromagnetic radiation specified in Article 30 of the Clean Air Law approved by the Islamic Consultative Assembly on 06/07/2017;

5-6- The satellite operator shall not cause harmful interference to the existing and planned satellite and terrestrial services in the I. R. of Iran or impose any constraint on their development;

5-7- The satellite operator is obliged to introduce its representative with necessary authorities in terms of technical and regulatory issues as well as other matters related to this Decision. The representative shall refer to CRA, if necessary;

5-8- Provision of any kind of roaming services to subscribers within the territory of the Islamic Republic of Iran is allowed only after the approval of CRA;

5-9- A foreign satellite operator is just allowed to provide services in the I. R. of Iran as long as the domestic operators are not able to provide the same services due to insufficient capacity or immaturity of technology;

5-10- Foreign passengers who are subscribers of satellite operators and travel to the I. R. of Iran with their own terminal, shall receive the required services only through the license holder authorized in the I. R. of Iran to provide satellite access. This must be explicitly notified to all subscribers by the satellite operator;

5-11- The satellite operator is obliged to submit to CRA the report of interferences caused to its uplink (earth-to-space) located inside the country along with the related technical documentation.

Article 6- Supervision

6-1- The satellite operator is obliged to provide all the necessary hardware, software and communication facilities required by CRA to get online access to assess coverage status of the satellite network and its services all over the country;

6-2- The satellite operator is obliged to cooperate with the inspectors of CRA immediately and unconditionally when supervising over the consistent implementation of this Decision.

 

Article 7- Violation and Breaching

7-1- If the satellite operator breaches the rules and provisions codified in this Decision, the following actions will be done:

7-1-1- Issuance of an official notice to set a deadline for responding and eliminating violations;

7-1-2- Order to stop the activities of satellite operator in the country if the violation is not eliminated.

7-2- Interruption in provision of services subject to this Decision is not considered as a violation of the satellite operator in any of the following cases, although, the satellite operator is obliged to establish communication in the shortest possible time:

(a) Space events such as rare solar storms;

(b) Occurrence of natural disasters such as floods, earthquakes, etc.

Article 8- Other Regulations

8-1- The satellite operator is obliged to comply with the laws and regulations of the country, the Decisions of the CRC and the notifications of CRA;

8-2- In case of any dispute between the license holders authorized by CRA to provide satellite access services and the satellite operator, the case will be referred to CRC by CRA, if the problem is not resolved by mutual negotiation, if it is occurred due to the parties' misunderstanding about the Decisions of CRC as well as issued licenses, and also if the request has been separately submitted to CRA by each of the parties.

8-3- The interpretation of the provisions of this Decision is solely the responsibility of the CRC.