106:, which had a near monopoly on Earth's satellite slots, had forgotten to claim the spots. Intelsat and foreign governments (such as the United States) thought the claim to be utterly ridiculous, and others concluded it was a money-making scheme. Both were particularly displeased as it uprooted a "gentlemen's agreement" whereby core countries controlled the orbital slots, while Tongasat would create a commercial market for those slots. According to Jonathon Ezor, "Tonga could have become a key player in the world telecommunications community" with its claim. After Nilson asked for six slots instead of sixteen, the ITU acquiesced in March 1991. Tongasat acquired a seventh slot soon after and eventually two more for a total of nine. Tonga's nine slots included slots at 14.0 degrees East, 70.0 degrees East, 83.3 degrees East, 130.0 degrees East, 134.0 degrees East, 138,0 degrees East, 142.5 degrees East, 170.75 degrees East, and 257.0 degrees East.
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planned to lease each spot for $ 2,000,000 a year, which could have resulted in a 20% increase in Tonga's national budget. Tongasat, by commercializing orbital slots, created a market for space that previously had not existed. Tongasat ended up charging around $ 700,000 per transponder. In
September 1994, Tongasat's market capitalization was valued at $ 45 million. After years of opaque finances supporting Salote Pilolevu Tuita, in 2009 the company paid back its debts to the Tongan government. In August 2018, Tongasat was convicted of transferring money from a Chinese venture to Salote Pelolevu Tuita instead of the government. Tongasat appealed, which was rejected by the
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178:, as both provoked a much larger country with imaginary creations. Other small countries have followed Tonga's lead in claiming unneeded slots, including Gibraltar, Papua New Guinea and Bermuda. The company also influenced Tonga's foreign relations, leading the country to recognize China instead of Taiwan.
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Tongasat's goal was to both profit commercially from the slots and to create a regional network in the
Pacific to promote satellite operation. While the Government would not have to fund operations, it would receive half of the profit. The company began with a loan by Nilson of $ 1,000,000. Tongasat
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into Tonga's 134.0 degrees East slot in August 1993. On 18 November that year, Rimsat One was launched, and on 20 May 1994 Rimsat Two was launched to the 142.5 degree East position. Afterwards, Rimsat filed for bankruptcy in 1995. The
Russian government then decided to confiscate the two satellites
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Matt Nilson, the founder of
Tongasat, had previously started a satellite company, Advanced Business Communications Inc, and got approval to launch two satellites; the project, however, soon failed. He launched Tongasat after moving to Tonga from San Diego originally to retire in 1987.
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In
October 1991, Unicom Satellite Corporation licensed two orbital slots from Tongasat, but failed to obtain the necessary funds to start operations. In April 1992, however, Rimsat Ltd. licensed slots and succeeded in launching three satellites. Tongasat also licensed one position to
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In
February 1994, Nilson was fired from Tongasat after an audit uncovered his ownership of Rimsat shares, a clear conflict of interest. In 1996, Tongasat ended its agreement with Rimsat and re-organized internally, hiring an all-Tongan staff.
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all claimed or occupied slots from
Tongasat against its wishes. PT Pasifik Satelit Nusantara and the Indonesian government had a long-lived dispute with Tongasat; after multiple summits, they came to a conclusion to share the slot.
86:, of the idea. Tāufaʻāhau Tupou, intrigued partially because of Tonga's poor communication systems, set up a formal meeting with Nilson in November 1987. Nilson convinced the king to secure orbital slots from the
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along with other
Oceanic nations. In April 1988, the Tongan government authorized the company, officially established as the Friendly Islands Satellite Communications Inc and registered on 13 February 1989.
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160:. The satellite was originally launched by NASA on 21 February 1981. This was partially because unused slots automatically expire. In 2003, Tongasat entered into a partnership with
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left and ignored
American court rulings and pleas from the American government to return them to Rimsat. By 1997, Tonga had five satellites in space, which soon dwindled to two.
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Nilson's application for sixteen out of a total of 180 orbital slots on 23 March 1990 - the last useful unclaimed ones - from the ITU sparked widespread outrage.
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and negotiated with
Informkosmos for another slot. Informkosmos, in partnership with Rimsat, launched a Russian satellite renamed
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for space. Tonga was the sixth-largest claimant of orbital slots due to Tongasat's efforts. In 2002, Tongasat launched the
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and then licensing those satellite filings to international satellite operators for their commercial use, in effect a
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506:"Costs Overhead: Tonga's Claiming of Sixteen Geostationary Orbital Sites and the Implications for U.S. Space Policy"
369:"Costs Overhead: Tonga's Claiming of Sixteen Geostationary Orbital Sites and the Implications for U.S. Space Policy"
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satellite, previously named Parallax and before that Comstar 4d (launched in 1981), that was moved to Tonga's own
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187:
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234:"Globalization, Stateless Capitalism, and the International Political Economy of Tonga's Satellite Venture"
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570:"Space Policies for Geostationary Spectrum / Orbit Resource : With Special Reference to Tongasat"
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483:"Space for Rent: The International Telecommunications Union, Space Law, and Orbit/Spectrum Leasing"
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On 15 April 2002 Tongasat started its own telecommunications industry when it obtained the
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is the licensed agent of the Kingdom of Tonga responsible for making and coordinating
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Through personal connections, Nilson communicated his idea to Princess
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satellite; as of 2015, a satellite in its spot was still in operation.
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444:"Trading Orbit Spectrum Assignments in the Space Satellite Industry"
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651:"Space Services Department (SSD) – SNL Part B – Query result"
705:"Space Program: A Tongan-Chinese Marriage of Convenience?"
323:"TongaSat: its obligation to Tonga and the Pacific region"
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Wesley-Smith, Terence; Porter, Edgar A. (1 March 2010).
600:"TONGSAT announces acquisition of ESIAFI-1 satellite"
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780:Telecommunications companies established in 1989
417:"Tonga's Supreme Court rejects Tongasat appeal"
391:"Tonga's royal satellite company settles debt"
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295:"Tiny Tonga Seeks Satellite Empire in Space"
732:China in Oceania: Reshaping the Pacific?
626:"The Space Review: Tough little spinner"
510:Law and Policy in International Business
373:Law and Policy in International Business
36:Tongan communications satellite operator
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133:The United States, China, Asianet, and
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88:International Telecommunication Union
48:International Telecommunication Union
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606:from the original on 26 January 2011
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172:Tongasat inspired comparisons with
785:Communications satellite operators
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530:"Why does Tonga own Outer Space?"
527:Riddick, Don (1 February 1994).
367:Ezor, Jonathan Ira (1992–1993).
82:, who then informed her father,
735:. Berghahn Books. p. 167.
487:Journal of Air Law and Commerce
321:Tupou, L. A.; Kupu, S. (2000).
266:David Mendosa (December 1994).
679:"Tonga Maneuvers To Save Slot"
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448:The American Economic Review
135:PT Pasifik Satelit Nusantara
46:'s satellite filings to the
504:Ezor, Jonathan Ira (1993).
164:to maintain the satellite.
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268:"Tongasat's Flawed Genius"
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574:Journal of Policy Studies
481:Thompson, Jannat (1996).
442:Levin, Harvey J. (1991).
188:Satellite Communications
84:King Taufa'ahau Tupou IV
27:Not to be confused with
775:Communications in Tonga
568:Minoru, Suzuki (1998).
630:www.thespacereview.com
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327:Pacific Health Dialog
175:The Mouse That Roared
112:APT Satellite Company
80:Salote Pilolevu Tuita
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52:flag of convenience
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742:978-0-85745-380-8
685:. 13 January 2003
602:. 15 April 2002.
535:Air and Space Law
397:. 31 January 2009
70:Location of Tonga
16:(Redirected from
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339:1015-7867
156:point at
709:Stratfor
604:Archived
347:11588938
182:See also
158:70° East
143:Esiafi 1
104:Intelsat
56:Esiafi 1
40:Tongasat
18:TONGASAT
689:25 June
660:25 June
635:25 June
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62:History
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