Centre unveiled a proposal for a licensing approach in assigning spectrum for satellite internet services, sparing companies like Elon Musk’s Starlink from the auction fray. The proposal is part of a comprehensive draft bill aimed at overhauling the antiquated Indian Telegraph Act that has long governed the telecommunications sector.
Tabled for parliamentary approval on Monday, this move represents a major triumph for Starlink and other global players such as Amazon’s Project Kuiper and OneWeb, who have vehemently opposed spectrum auctions in India, fearing a ripple effect on costs and investments globally.
While foreign companies applaud the pragmatic shift, the proposal poses a setback for Mukesh Ambani‘s Reliance Jio, the nation’s largest telecom operator. Reliance Jio had argued in favour of an auction-based model akin to the one employed for 5G spectrum distribution, asserting that it would establish a fair playing field for foreign satellite service providers to compete with traditional telecom players.
Deloitte projects a robust 36 per cent annual growth in India’s satellite broadband service market, reaching USD 1.9 billion by 2030.
Beyond spectrum allocation, the draft telecom bill, introduced on Monday, empowers the Indian government to suspend or prohibit the use of telecom equipment from specific countries on grounds of national security.
