Mobile TV, broadband data transmission, emergency communications. These are the three major areas that from 2009 are expected to benefit from the Decision on the EU-wide selection of mobile satellite service providers, which was adopted one week ago as a EU Commission’s proposal, while waiting for the final launch by the EU Parliament and the Council of Telecommunication Ministers. By taking this measure, the Executive means to lay the foundations for the creation and operation of a “single European market for mobile satellite services”, to replace the current national systems whereby each state now applies different selection methods, licences, costs and access systems. By early 2009, therefore, the new international operators will be selected after receiving an “open invitation to bid” whereby the technical and commercial quality of their services will be assessed along with other criteria, such as their geographical coverage, “competitive advantages and, for consumers, public order and the efficiency of their radio range”.
