Given, among other things, the rise of satellite-delivered broadband as a potential competitor to terrestrial service, the Federal Communications Commission is creating a new Space Bureau to deal with the growing flock of birds.

FCC chair Jessica Rosenworcel said Thursday (November 3) that the FCC’s International Bureau would be reconfigured as the Space Bureau plus a standalone Office of International Affairs. The goal is to “elevate” the significance of satellite programs and policy at the agency, Rosenworcel said.

Rosenworcel conceded that while the satellite industry is going gangbusters — 64,000 applications for new satellites have been made in the past two years alone — the FCC’s regulatory framework had not kept pace.

She pointed to new players and models — those include the Low Earth Orbit (LEOs) driving the satellite broadband industry and players like SpaceX’s Starlink and OneWeb.

“By separating satellite policy from the ‘International Bureau,’ the agency acknowledges the role of satellite communications in advancing domestic communications policy and achieving U.S. broadband goals,” Rosenworcel’s office said. ▪️

FCC chair Ajit Pai has named Tom Sullivan to serve as chief of the FCC's International Bureau.

Sullivan had been acting chief. He's an FCC veteran with more than 25 years with the agency, including time in the Office of Managing Director.

Before being named acting bureau chief, he had been an associate chief of the International Bureau, and before that chief of staff. Pai called Sullivan a wise counselor.

"He brings a tremendous depth and breadth of experience to the job, and I know that he can be counted on to represent our country well in our interactions with other countries and in managing our communications needs in space," Pai said.