ABSTRACT
In the immediate post-Sputnik era space commerce was both conducted and regulated by governments. Except in science fiction there were no private activities in outer space. In the 1980s the nature of space industries began to change rapidly thanks to developments in the regulatory environment, technological advance, commercial strategies and consumer demand. In parallel private space commerce developed. Government deregulation and agreement in the World Trade Organisation (WTO) on basic telecommunications boosted private enterprise in that sector of space commerce.1 Increasing launch capability, growth in the size and capacity of satellites including the number of transponders per satellite, and decreasing costs of manufacturing, launching and operating satellites stimulated the entire space industry.2 Demand for space services grew as they became robust and more reliable. Remote sensing services became commercially available and started to make money. The consequence was an increase in private and public satellite infrastructure and satellite service companies. New law has had to be developed. In particular privately operated satellite networks use existing national contract laws but may require a new private international law specifically designed for private contracts relating to securities over space assets.
