Starlink to apply for licence to offer internet services in India

Hyderabad With an aim to install two lakh devices in India by December next year, satellite internet company Startlink will apply for commercial license approval. Meanwhile, the Elon Musk headed company has been warned by Indian government to fulfill the essential requirements to provide internet services in India.

Interacting with its customers in India, the company's Country Director, Sanjay Bhargava wrote in a LinkedIn post, "We hope to have applied for a commercial license on or before January 31, 2022 (unless we hit some major roadblock). We felt it would be useful to prepare two guides that help in thinking about and planning for Starlink - one for Individuals and Private Sector and one for State and Union Territories. The company cannot offer services in India without acquiring a licence to do so. Post the orders by the DoT, Starlink had closed its pre-booking portal which was previously available."

The company also wants to uplift the rural areas with an initiative to install 80 per cent of the devices there. India will require collaboration across stakeholders, service providers, and technologies to provide 100 per cent broadband connections, Bhargava added.

The company had earlier made announcements about launching a 100 per cent Starlink owned subsidiary in India, and it can start applying for licenses, open bank accounts in India, the company has already received 5,000 pre-orders in India. But turns out all that cannot be processed now because the company has not sought a license from the Centre to carry out operations here.

Starlink had charged a deposit of $99 or 7,350 from customers to be part of a priority list. If the services are activated, the amount will be adjusted against the monthly fee.

The company plans to provide the services by terrestrial broadband in rural regions but the areas that are difficult to reach will be handled by Satcom providers like Starlink.