Regulations and in accordance with any decision which may be taken by competent conferences of the Union, the date, purpose and technical characteristics of each of these assignments, with a view to ensuring formal international recognition thereof;^ 2.2 Association by ITU of Radio Frequencies and Orbital Positions The duties of the IFRB were enormously enlarged in 1973. Thus, in Article 10.3. it is provided that the Board is: (b) to effect, in the same conditions and for the same purpose, an orderly recording of the positions assigned by countries to geostationary satellites. In establishing this new function for the ITU a direct association was made between frequency assignments and the orbital position or "slot" occupied by a space object having the capacity to make use of radio frequencies or channels. Since 1973, pursuant to Article 33 of the 1973 Convention, the ITU has moved from the essentially ministerial function of registering national assignments of space orbits to the furnishing of advice to members and to the formulation of policy relating "to the equitable, effective and economical use of the geostationary satellite orbit." Despite the making of the above association in the quoted language, the question of whether from an analytical point of view there is a need to join the "recording of frequency assignments" to "positions assigned by countries to geostationary satellites" deserves critical assessment. In referring to the radio spectrum and orbits it has been suggested that the preferred designation is "the nominal orbit/spectrum Article 13.1. of the 1965 Convention; Article 10.3. of the 1973 Convention. 5 °Infra, p. 15.
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