Jeff Bezos, Elon Musk set to enter India with satellite-based internet services
The billionaires will be giving a tough competition to Airtel and Jio in the high-speed broadband and internet space.
FollowWorld’s two richest businessmen, Jeff Bezos and Elon Musk are set to take on Sunil Mittal and Mukesh Ambani with satellite-based high-speed broadband internet in India.
The billionaires will be giving a tough competition to Airtel and Jio in the high-speed broadband and internet space.
Musk’s satellite internet company Starlink and Bezos had separate talks with India’s Department of Telecom and Department of Space to allow them to start satellite-based internet connectivity services but they are open to apply for a licence through the formal route as well, according to Times of India report.
Consultants from companies approached the DoT to offer broadband internet connectivity in India using a constellation of satellites and are expected to apply for licences soon, the report added quoting government officials.
Basically, they want to start satellite-based internet services in India, “though they are yet to apply for a license through the formal route”.
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“Consultants representing the companies have had discussions with us, and have indicated that they are keen to offer internet services in India using a constellation of satellites. We expect them to apply for the license very soon,” said sources from the telecom department.
Currently, Mittal’s Bharti Global which holds the largest stake in UK-based OneWeb, is the only company that has publicly announced plans of launching satellite-based services by next year (also launching across other global geographies). Airtel already holds a National Long Distance (NLD) licence from the DoT and also has plans to launch services in other geographies.
The telecom firm has also received a national long-distance (NLD) license from the telecom department.
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More through low-earth orbit (LEO) satellites at a distance of 1,000 km from Earth, these companies plan to offer heavy bandwidth with speeds as high as 1 GBPS. They offer to sell bandwidth to users including business enterprises, railways, shipping companies and defence establishments, airlines and telecom companies in direct competition with incumbent telecom giants such as Airtel and Jio.
Interestingly, these satellite-based high-speed broadband internet will help connect hard to reach dark zones such as far-off rural areas and cut off terrains such as mountains, deserts and sensitive areas where traditional broadband infrastructure has not reached yet.
“All the mandates, including those around lawful interception and other security needs, will need to be adhered to as per the licensing conditions,” sources said.
Starlink has appointed Sanjay Bhargava as India director, which Musk co-founded. Earlier, Musk had publicly stated that his company is keen to come to India through his ambitious project, Starlink. He said “Just figuring out the regulatory approval process,” while talking about the India plans.
