Limping in long after the horses – led in this case by Motorola Inc’s Iridium Inc – have bolted in all directions, the European Community has agreed to establish a policy to help its telecommunications and space industries be more competitive in the field of personal satellite communications; the telecommunications Council of Ministers resolved that Community states should also develop a co-ordinated position on the sector within international organisations and that the European Commission should co-ordinate the global introduction of new systems with third countries if necessary, intensifying co-operation with European standards, radio communications and regulatory groups on problems related to technical standards, radio frequencies and licences, and create a forum for consulting interested parties about strategic problems and draft reports every two years on developments affecting trade in the sector, especially in the area of licences, and propose any legislation that it thought was necessary.
