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A high-level conference will reportedly be held later this month to evaluate Starlink's request for a GMPCS service licence, according to a TOI article.
Starlink, a satellite internet provider owned by SpaceX, may soon obtain the licence necessary to begin offering services in India. A GMPCS (global mobile personal communication by satellite) service licence is necessary for a company to provide satellite broadband services in India. Elon Musk's satellite startup is finally expected to get the go-ahead from the telecom ministry to start providing services in India after spending nearly a year being held up in the home ministry due to security concerns.This licence has already been purchased by Jio Satellite Communications Ltd. and OneWeb.
A high-level conference will reportedly be held later this month to evaluate Starlink's request for a GMPCS service licence, according to a TOI article. The proposal is probably approved. However, there is always a chance that some last-minute issues will arise and cause the company's licence approval to be further delayed. Before officially collecting orders and working towards commencing operations, Starlink must first obtain GMPCS and a few other approvals from several government agencies as well as the department of space.
Many locations across the world currently have commercial internet services available from Starlink. When Starlink began selling reservations in India back in 2021, it charged 99 USD for each connection. The cost of all the equipment wasn't included in this. Therefore, compared to what users must pay for fibre broadband, the entire cost of the equipment plus the internet service would be prohibitively high for the majority of users.
Watching Starlink's approach to competing with OneWeb and Jio in the Indian market is to watch out for. OneWeb is anticipated to launch its services shortly after achieving its objective of building a global LEO satellite constellation a few months ago.
Starlink and Ambani’s Reliance disagree over how the government distributes satellite broadband spectrum, setting up a conflict between two of the richest men in the world over satellite services in the country.
Both are competing for the Indian market. For the right to introduce satellite broadband services in India, Starlink and Jio are in competition for spectrum distribution. In order to provide a level playing field for domestic and international companies in the traditional telecom sector, Ambani insists on an auction while Musk pushes for licencing.