The annual cost of licensing a non-geostationary orbit (NGSO) gateway in the UK will rise from £500 to as much as £20,900 under new spectrum-pricing rules published by Ofcom.

The 40-fold increase, which the regulator expects to take effect in early 2027, brings administered incentive pricing (AIP) to satellite gateway stations for the first time. Ofcom has historically applied AIP only where excess demand for spectrum signals an opportunity cost that users ought to pay.

What does Ofcom's new fee structure mean for operators?

For a gateway operating 20 antennas across Ka-band, Q/V-band and E-band, Ofcom's worked example puts the Ka-band fee at £7,800 ($10,400), the Q/V-band fee at £9,500, and the E-band fee at £3,600.

SpaceX and Amazon Leo, the companies driving the current NGSO and low-Earth orbit (LEO) build-out, both operate licensed gateway sites in the UK. SpaceX holds temporary E-band licences — covering 71–76 GHz and 81–86 GHz — at three English sites: Morn Hill in Hampshire, Wherestead in Suffolk, and Woodwalton in Cambridgeshire.

The company also runs Ka-band gateways on the Isle of Man and at Fawley, Hampshire. Amazon Leo, by contrast, holds only a single Ka-band licence, at Bude on the Cornish coast.

The previous £500 annual fee, Ofcom noted, "reflected the relatively limited interest in NGSO services" when the regime was last reviewed in 2006.

How is Ofcom calculating the new fees?

The new structure introduces two additional band authorisations: Q/V-band (37.5–52.4 GHz) and E-band. Each band carries its own "band factor" used in the fee formula. The widely used Ku-band (12–18 GHz) retains a factor of 1, and Ka-band (26.5–40 GHz) stays at 0.6. The newer bands carry lower factors "to reflect the lower opportunity cost of this use."

Ofcom also caps fees at the ten most spectrum-sterilising antennas on any single gateway. The regulator argues that any additional antennas at the same location "will not materially increase the impact on other users' ability to use the spectrum."

Ofcom characterised the new regime as "proportionate and appropriate for NGSO users" and reflective of the "impact on other spectrum users."

Why is Ofcom raising fees now?

In Ofcom's view, the structure "encourages NGSOs to use spectrum efficiently and deliver services with the lowest feasible bandwidth, power, or number of Gateways, thereby reducing the potential for spectrum sterilisation and limiting interference with other spectrum users."

The regulator spelled out the consumer risk in plain terms. "If the fees are set below opportunity cost, there is a risk that gateway licences will be held by satellite providers who are not the highest-value users of that asset. This would be harmful for consumers," Ofcom said.

The fee increase lands as the UK NGSO market moves from experimental curiosity to commercial scale. Ofcom acknowledged that "NGSO operators will face an increase in their fees" but described the change as "modest and scalable" to spectrum usage.

Where else are satellite fees rising?

The UK is not alone in asking NGSO operators for more. Kenya replaced its flat "landing rights" regime with a 15- or 25-year gateway licence in 2025. A 15-year licence now costs around $115,000, and a 25-year licence runs $345,000, against a previous flat fee of $12,500.

South Africa's ICASA opened its own satellite spectrum fee review in June 2026. The shape of that regime is not yet clear.

Ofcom expects the new fees to take effect in early 2027, following a round of consultations still to come.