India rejects Elon Musk's claim over Starlink launch
India dismisses Starlink's discrimination claims after a five-year delay, as local telecom giants Reliance Jio and Bharti Airtel push rival satellite services.
Stock photo for illustration only, not from the actual event
- Starlink has spent over five years trying to enter the Indian market without commercial launch.
- The company deployed 20+ gateway sites and appointed Prabhakar Jayakumar to lead India operations.
- Major Indian telcos Jio and Airtel are pursuing their own competing satellite broadband services.
- Starlink recently launched Starlink Mobile in neighboring Bangladesh this week.
Starlink, the satellite internet division of SpaceX, has faced prolonged hurdles in launching its commercial operations in India, a massive market boasting over a billion internet subscribers. Despite securing essential regulatory approvals and partnering with major Indian telecom operators Reliance Jio and Bharti Airtel last year, the company has yet to roll out commercial services after spending more than five years attempting to enter the region. SpaceX has also established a domestic team, appointing former Payoneer executive Prabhakar Jayakumar in December to spearhead its operations in India.
According to Starlink, the company has already deployed more than 20 gateway ground stations and hundreds of antennas across India, while tailoring its infrastructure to comply with the nation's stringent regulatory, security, and data-sovereignty mandates. Furthermore, SpaceX has positioned its satellite network to act as a complementary layer rather than a direct replacement for India's established terrestrial telecommunication networks.
SpaceX's initial entry attempt in India dates back to 2021. The firm was subsequently forced to issue refunds for hardware preorders in early 2022 after the Indian government criticized the company for booking and rendering satellite internet services prior to acquiring the necessary operational licenses. Meanwhile, Jio and Airtel, India's two dominant telecom carriers, are aggressively pursuing their own satellite internet offerings. Jio has partnered with satellite operator SES, while Airtel serves as a primary financial backer for Eutelsat OneWeb, another licensed satellite provider in the country.
Stock photo for illustration only, not from the actual event
The ongoing friction surrounding Starlink's entry into India underscores the complex regulatory landscape that foreign technology giants must navigate when dealing with critical national infrastructure and data sovereignty. As local telecommunications heavyweights like Jio and Airtel expand their own satellite broadband ecosystems, foreign entrants face not only regulatory scrutiny but also formidable domestic market competition that shapes the timeline of digital connectivity policy.
While the exact timeline for Starlink's official launch in India remains ambiguous, the company expanded its footprint this week by launching Starlink Mobile—a service linking standard smartphones directly to satellites—in neighboring Bangladesh. Representatives for Starlink, India's Ministry of Communications, Reliance Jio, and Bharti Airtel did not immediately respond to requests for comment regarding these developments.
Source: TechCrunch
Found something wrong in this article? Report an issue with this article
Comments
Leave a Comment