Developments in direct broadcasting satellite (DBS) regulation--which have evolved in the United Nations (UN), the International Telecommunications Union (ITU), and Unesco--have had an impact on the current international regulatory environment for DBS, especially those regulations evolving in the ITU, which has established a foundation of technical norms upon which further regulation can be created. Two international problems have blocked the widespread establishment of DBS systems: that of international broadcasting via DBS and that of access to the "geosynchronous orbits" (GSO). While the UN became bogged down in the free flow of information vs. the national sovereignty question and Unesco began to concentrate on the New World Information Order issue, the ITU moved ahead with the formulation of DBS regulation based on technical parameters. The history of efforts to formulate international DBS regulations suggests several implications for the regulatory environment, specifically that (1) future success will depend on the willingness of nations to cooperate and compromise; (2) Western countries are likely to stay in ITU; (3) as long as strictly technical problems and issues exist, the ITU will continue to be the forum in which further DBS regulations are created; and (4) technological advances and economic developments will complicate the creation of further DBS regulations. A list of 66 references is appended. (JD)