Ganesh Kendale
Elon Musk, the owner of Starlink, a global satellite constellation, has expressed commitment to serving the people of India through a post on X. This statement follows the Indian government’s decision to allocate spectrum for satellite broadband administratively, rather than through auctions. Musk posted on X that Starlink “will do its best to serve the people of India”.
An international citizen journalist known as ‘DogeDesigner’, believed to have close ties with Musk, shared on X that this development is favorable for Starlink, particularly after Musk’s criticism of the auction route advocated by Mukesh Ambani, the chairman of Reliance Industries.
According to an ET report, Communications Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia announced on Tuesday that the allocation of spectrum for satellite services would be done administratively, with the cost determined by the telecom regulator.
This announcement coincided with Musk’s clear intentions to compete and provide Internet services in India through Starlink, setting the stage for intense competition with leading Indian telecom companies such as Reliance Jio and Bharti Airtel.
Sunil Mittal, chairman of Bharti Enterprises, has aligned with Jio in advocating for equal treatment between telecom and satcom services. Bharti-backed Eutelsat OneWeb is also preparing to launch satcom services in India in the near future.
Previously, Jio had reached out to Scindia, requesting the auction of satellite spectrum and the reissuance of the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India’s (TRAI) recent consultation paper on the subject to ensure fair competition between satcom and terrestrial networks.
The ET report said that the government seems to be supporting Musk, who had earlier stated on X that “calls by Jio and Bharti Airtel to auction satcom spectrum would be ‘unprecedented as this spectrum was long designated by the ITU (International Telecom Union) as shared spectrum for satellites'”.
Starlink operates a worldwide network of satellites in low-earth orbit (LEO) and provides space-based broadband connectivity in several nations. The company possesses the technological ability to offer satellite broadband services directly to smartphones in any location worldwide.
This development coincides with Starlink’s anticipated receipt of a GMPCS (global mobile personal communications by satellite services) license from Indian authorities, which would allow the company to introduce its satellite broadband services in India.
