Elon Musk's Starlink may soon get a license to provide its services in India. Telecom Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia informed on Tuesday, November 12 that Starlink is in the process of completing all the necessary rules and regulations of the government related to security. The Telecom Minister said that this is a major condition set by the government. He said that the application for license of Starlink has progressed.
Earlier in a report of news website moneycontrol, it was said that Starlink has agreed to fulfill the conditions of the government in recent meetings with the Department of Telecommunications (DOT). However, this report also states that Starlink has not yet formally shared its compliance agreement with the Department of Telecommunications. This report says that Starlink has agreed to meet the data localization and security standards of the Government of India. In such a situation, it is believed that Elon Musk's company Starlink can soon start its satellite internet service in India.
Data localization means that Starlink will have to store the information of Indian customers within India and if necessary, the company will have to share the information related to these users with the government intelligence agencies of India.
A report by India Today states that it is necessary to follow these rules to start satellite internet services in India. Only after this, the Government of India issues Global Mobile Personal Communication by Satellite Services (GMPCS) license to the applying company. This license is necessary to start satellite internet services in India. Only after getting this license, the Government of India gives spectrum to a company for testing. Only after this can a company start its initial satellite internet services in India.
What is Starlink's satellite internet service?
Starlink is a satellite internet service provided by Elon Musk's company Space X. Generally, all the companies providing internet services in the country till now offer internet either by laying underground cables or through mobile towers, whereas Starlink uses satellites orbiting the earth to provide internet services to its customers. Uses the network. The main objective of Starlink is to provide high speed internet in those remote areas where broadband services are not available. Especially in rural areas and those places where it is very difficult to install towers. Starlink's internet services do not work like normal broadband. In this, one does not have to rely on miles long cables. Starlink provides internet services directly from space. Because of this, high speed internet reaches remote areas. Although satellite internet services are still running, the service providing companies are using satellites that are far away from the earth. Because of this the internet speed remains slow. Due to delay in data transmission, there is difficulty in getting high speed internet. Starlink satellites are very close to the earth, so they can provide high speed internet without delay. Another special thing about Starlink is that you can stay connected to high speed internet even in the sky. As we know that broadband company provides internet service through fiber optic cable to send data. In cities and towns, it is easy to provide internet only through cable, but in remote areas and hilly areas, it becomes very difficult and expensive to do so. This is where Starlink comes in handy.
Starlink had applied for this license in India in October 2022. India Today report states that Elon Musk's company is working closely with IN SPACE for further approvals. The full name of IN SPACE is Indian National Space Promotion and Authorization Centre. It works like a space regulator, that is, if any private company wants to start a space-related project in India, then it is necessary to take permission from this space.
An India Today report states that more information has been sought before granting license to Kuiper, the satellite-related project of Starlink and Amazon. IN SPACE Chairman Pawan Kumar Goenka has confirmed this from Money Control. He said both companies are in the process of responding to the questions raised by the space regulator. India Today report says that if there is any major hurdle in Starlink launching its satellite internet services in India, it is the pricing and spectrum allocation rules for satellite broadband services to be made by the government. Guidelines regarding this may also come soon from the government.
Recently, in an interview given to news agency PTI, Telecom Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia had said that the government will allocate spectrum for satellite broadband instead of auctioning it. Jyotiraditya Scindia emphasized that no country auctions satellite spectrum but chooses to allocate it as per ITU guidelines. India has included satellite spectrum under the schedule of its Telecommunications Act of 2023. For this the government needs spectrum allocation. The Telecom Minister had said that the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) will decide the price of this spectrum. After this, this decision of the government was supported by Elon Musk.
According to a report by Business Today journalist Danny D'Cruz, the Indian government's decision to allocate spectrum through spectrum auction is in line with the global standards set by the International Telecommunication Union (ITO).
Can India's leading telecom companies face a shock?
This decision is being considered as a blow to India's leading telecom companies Jio and Bharti Airtel led by Mukesh Ambani and Sunil Mittal. These companies have advocated auction of satellite spectrum. Some time ago, Jio had also written a letter to the telecom regulator TRAI regarding this entire matter. Jio believes that such spectrum should be given through auction. On the lines of Jio, Bharatiya Airtel Chairman Sunil Mittal had also insisted on auction of spectrum. These companies say that they have spent a lot of money to get the spectrum. In such a situation, if companies like Starlink or Amazon's Kuiper start their services, they may face a shock. Whereas the new spectrum allocation strategy of the government can provide a lot of help to international companies like Starlink in starting their satellite services in India as the company may have to spend less money.
By Anil Paal
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