A government-private joint project in Japan -Quasi Zenith Satellite System-
- Paper number
IAC-08.E3.3.5
- Author
Mr. Kozo Harada, Japan
- Year
2008
- Abstract
In 2000,?a series of space development experiments by Japanese government failed, and some of launches was failed. Therefore some of space development plans by the government were placed in the state of moratorium. At that time, public (government) –private joint projects led by private sectors had become expected to stimulate the Japanese space industries. Then in 2001, Nippon Keidanren (Japan Business Federation) proposed Quasi Zenith Satellite System (QZSS) as a public-private joint project. In the next year, private sectors, such as Hitachi, Mitsubishi, Toyota, and many Japanese leading companies, established a planning company “Advanced Space Business Corporation” for the feasibility study of QZSS, which mission was to deliver a combined service of communication, broadcasting and navigation. The government Council of Science and Technology Policy evaluated the QZSS as a national important research and development project, and total 210 billion yen of approximate cost, 160 billion yen of development cost for 5 years (government 110, private 50) and 50 billion yen of operation cost for 12 years, was determined. The private sectors made two conditions as premises for converting the planning company (ASBC) into business corporation: 1) Satellite navigation is to be government program, 2) A government organization in charge of the navigation system operation is to be determined. In 2003, however, each of the government and private sectors had started the development even though the two conditions were not fulfilled. But the government urged the private sectors to convert ASBC into business corporation while terrestrial communication and broadcasting infrastructure spread rapidly. In 2005, the private sectors announced that the QZSS would be renounced if the two conditions mentioned above would not be fulfilled, the QZSS would not be economically possible as a private business. In the next year, a committee, dealing with navigation system and geographic information system established in the Cabinet, made a “basic plan for the promotion of QZSS”. The basic plan stated that the government will launch the first demonstration satellite of QZSS with only navigation mission, and perform terrestrial application demonstration and joint research by government and private sectors. And it also stated that the whole 3-satellite-system comes after the evaluation of the demonstration satellite. After the statements of the basic plan, which is a kind of agreement between government and private sectors, ASBC was transformed to SPAC. In 2007, “Basic Act on the Advancement of Utilizing Geospatial Information”, expecting synergy effect of satellite positioning and GIS, gained approval at the Diet. And now government and private sectors are moving toward the same direction.
- Abstract document
- Manuscript document
(absent)