Elon Musk's Starlink to explore collaboration with Indian telcos for broadband
- IBEF
- November 8, 2021
Starlink, the broadband arm of SpaceX, plans to explore alliance with telecom firms in India to expand its broadband services in the country, stated a senior management official of the compnay.
The company is expected to focus on the rural areas of India. Mr. Sanjay Bhargava, Starlink Country Director India at SpaceX stated that the company is expected to start discussions with broadband service providers once the 12 Phase-1 aspirational districts are recognised by the Niti Aayog. The company would analyse the interest levels of the various firms and the USOF (universal service obligation fund).
He said, “I am anticipating that we would receive a time-bound 100% broadband proposal that would serve as a model for other districts. However, we are would look into the proposal details to understand the interest level of the players.”
As per Starlink, the company has received >5,000 pre-orders from India. The company’s per customer deposit stands at US$ 99 or Rs. 7,350. Also, as per the company, it delivers data speed between 50-150 megabits per second in the beta stage.
Previously, Mr. Bhargava announced that the company plans to focus on 10 rural Lok Sabha constituencies in India to offer internet services for 80% of the Starlink terminals shipped to the country.
He said, “'At Starlink, if we have licensing approvals, the roll out could be faster and the starlinks could move to other remote areas.”
He also stated that the company wishes to partner with all.
Mr. Bhargava said, “'We want to partner with all to accelerate the broadband service in the country, especially in rural districts.”
Disclaimer: This information has been collected through secondary research and IBEF is not responsible for any errors in the same.
Partners
