International Broadcasters Call for End of Satellite Jamming

January 24, 2012

Geneva, Switzerland — Five of the largest international broadcasters have called upon delegates now convening in Geneva for an international treaty-making conference to address the problem of intentional interference with satellite transmissions.

The practice, known as “satellite uplink jamming,” seeks to disrupt international broadcast coverage. And it is spreading, according to the Directors General of five international broadcast organizations: British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), Deutsche Welle (DW), Audiovisuel Extérieur de la France (AEF), Radio Netherlands Worldwide (RNW) and the U.S. Broadcasting Board of Governors (BBG).

They also noted that satellite uplink jamming is contrary Article 15 of the Radio Regulations of the International Telecommunication Union, and Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which reads:

“Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers.”

The European Broadcasting Union (EBU), the largest association of national broadcasters in the world, conveyed the views of the five broadcasters in a note to the World Radiocommunication Conference (WRC-12), which convenes in Geneva from January 23 through February 17. The Conference is held every three to four years at the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) – a specialized agency of the United Nations – and is mandated to review and revise the Radio Regulations, the international treaty governing the use of radio-frequency spectrum and satellite orbits.

The statement (reproduced below) appeals to “Member States, working with the support of the satellite industry and broadcasters from all regions, to work to end this increasingly prevalent practice of deliberate interference to satellite broadcasting signals.”