Elon Musk-led Starlink is likely to receive a licence soon to launch satellite broadband services in India, as company representatives met with commerce minister Piyush Goyal on Wednesday to discuss future investment plans in the country.
In a social media post, Goyal shared that he had met with Starlink’s vice-President Chad Gibbs and Senior Director Ryan Goodnight. “Met a delegation from Starlink, comprising of Vice President Chad Gibbs & Senior Director, Ryan Goodnight. Discussions covered Starlink’s cutting-edge technology platform, their existing partnerships & future investment plans in India,” said the minister.
Starlink has been attempting to enter India’s satellite communication sector since 2021, but it is yet to receive the necessary licence to operate in India. The company, which currently serves over 125 countries, requires a Global Mobile Personal Communication by Satellite (GMPCS) licence to provide satellite services in India. While licences have been granted to Bharti Group-backed OneWeb and the Jio-SES joint venture, Jio Satellite Communications, both Starlink and Amazon’s Project Kuiper are still awaiting approval from Indian authorities. Meanwhile, the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) official said they are taking care of all due diligence before granting the license to the company.
In 2021, Starlink refunded pre-order payments it had collected from Indian customers due to regulatory hurdles. India’s top two telcos Bharti Airtel and Reliance Industries Jio Platform announced partnership with Starlink to provide broadband services to their customers.
Jio will leverage Starlink in conjunction with its JioAirFiber and JioFiber offerings, while Airtel intends to utilise Starlink’s enterprise solutions for business connectivity. Additionally, both telcos will distribute Starlink services through their retail and online channels, stock equipment in physical stores, and provide customer service for installation and activation. Communication Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia shared many times that India will have multiple players providing satellite communications, just like mobile or terrestrial networks.