Elon Musk’s Starlink Cleared To Operate In India, Services To Begin Soon

Elon Musk's Starlink has secured its long-awaited final regulatory approval to provide satellite-based internet services in India, marking a significant milestone in the company's efforts to enter one of the world's largest connectivity markets. The Indian National Space Promotion and Authorisation Centre (IN-SPACe), the country's space regulator, has officially granted Starlink the authorization to begin commercial operations using its Gen1 satellite constellation over Indian territory.

This approval makes Starlink the third company, after Eutelsat OneWeb and Reliance Jio, to receive full regulatory clearance to offer satellite internet services in India. The license is valid until July 7, 2030, and includes the authorization to operate in designated frequency bands for both gateway and user terminals, allowing data transmission to and from Indian users.

Despite this key approval, Starlink must still complete several steps before rolling out services commercially. These include obtaining spectrum allocation from the Indian government, building ground infrastructure such as gateway stations, and conducting security and technical trials. The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) is expected to grant trial spectrum to facilitate these preliminary tests.

Starlink intends to set up at least three gateway stations across India as part of its initial network deployment. The regulatory process had drawn significant attention, especially due to a dispute between Starlink and Reliance Jio over spectrum distribution methods. In the end, the government favored Starlink's approach, opting for administrative allocation instead of spectrum auctions.

In anticipation of launching services, Starlink has already entered into early commercial agreements with Indian VSAT operators. This indicates an initial focus on enterprise and government broadband solutions, with plans to introduce consumer-level offerings at a later stage.

In essence, Starlink now holds all major approvals to begin operations in India, but full-scale commercial services will commence only after the final spectrum assignment, infrastructure rollout, and trial completions are fulfilled.