Musk’s Starlink gets key license to launch satellite internet services in India
Advertisement
Read this article for free:
or
Already have an account? Log in here »
To continue reading, please subscribe:
Digital Subscription
One year of digital access for only $205*
- Enjoy unlimited reading on winnipegfreepress.com
- Read the E-Edition, our digital replica newspaper
- Access News Break, our award-winning app
- Play interactive puzzles
*First annual payment billed as $205.00 + GST for one year. This annual subscription will automatically renew at $233.00 + GST every 52 weeks (10% off the regular annual price of $259.35). Offer available to new and qualified returning subscribers only. Cancel any time.
To continue reading, please subscribe:
Add Free Press access to your Brandon Sun subscription for only an additional
$1 for the first 4 weeks*
- Enjoy unlimited reading on winnipegfreepress.com
- Read the E-Edition, our digital replica newspaper
- Access News Break, our award-winning app
- Play interactive puzzles
*Your next Brandon Sun subscription payment will increase by $1.00 and you will be charged $17.95 plus GST for four weeks. After four weeks, your payment will increase to $24.95 plus GST every four weeks.
Read unlimited articles for free today:
or
Already have an account? Log in here »
Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 06/06/2025 (446 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.
NEW DELHI (AP) — India has granted a key license to Elon Musk’s Starlink, bringing the satellite provider a step closer to launching its commercial internet services in the country, a top Indian government official said on Friday.
“Yes. License has been granted,” said the official with direct knowledge of the matter at the department of telecommunications. The official declined to be identified because the information isn’t public.
The approval comes at a time when Musk is embroiled in a public spat with U.S. President Donald Trump, which threatens billions of dollars’ worth in contracts between Starlink and the U.S. government.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Musk met in the U.S. in February, when the two discussed the company’s long-delayed plans for India.
In March, Starlink signed agreements with India’s top two telecom operators — Reliance Jio and Bharti Airtel — to bring the U.S. satellite internet giant’s services to the world’s most populous country.
At least 40% of India’s more than 1.4 billion people have no access to the internet. Cheap satellite broadband is needed to bridge this gap, particularly in India’s vast remote and mountainous rural areas.
The department of telecommunications recently approved a similar license for Reliance Jio, the country’s biggest telecom service provider owned by billionaire Mukesh Ambani.
The next phase for Musk’s company would be to secure a separate approval from India’s space regulator and secure airwaves used for telecommunications from the government, which may take at least a couple of months.
The company would also need to showcase through testing and trials that it meets local security rules which it has agreed to while securing the license.
But the biggest challenge Musk’s company faces is pricing as mobile data in India is among the world’s cheapest. Ambani’s Jio once even provided it for free with mobile plans.
Starlink operates the world’s largest satellite constellation with over 6,750 satellites currently orbiting Earth to provide low-latency broadband, including to areas where internet previously has been completely unavailable.