Reliance Airtel Group Challenges Low India Satcom Fee Which Can Help Starlink
As the issue of chargeable rates for satellite spectrum is under debate in India, Reliance Jio and Bharti Airtel-the power players in the Indian telecom arena-warn in unison about “unjustifiably low rates” which could galvanize services such as Starlink and thus destroy their land-based empires.
The telecom landscape in India is set for disruption. In May, a new proposal was floated by the regulator, which could require satellite service operators to remit about 4% of their annual incomes to the government. The proposal considers the push for an alternative approach by the players such as Starlink to having spectrum auctions in India, instead of assigning licenses-the latest global trend developed. According to Starlink, spectrum is a common resource, a natural endowment ripe for communal use and not a commodity to be contested in an auction.
Telecom fever is brewing! India’s top mobile carriers, under the aegis of the Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI), are taking on the government in its plans to price spectrum. In a fiery letter dated May 29th, these carriers opine that the established player has actually faced a steep climb financially due to high upfront auction payments for telecom spectrum, and they claim that this has led to them incurring spectrum payments which are roughly 21% higher than what satellite-based competitors would pay for. A spectrum showdown is in the making!
“The players should get an equal field: equal spectrum, equal price. This is the crux of the demand in a letter obtained by Reuters, arguing that access to radio frequencies in reaching the same consumers for the same services should cost equally, if not identically per MHz.”
“Satellite services can offer competitive and affordable alternatives to terrestrial broadband,” it added.
Requests for comment to Reliance, helmed by Asia’s wealthiest individual, Ambani, and Airtel went unanswered. Starlink remained silent.
Such was Indian telecom silence lately a few days’ lull as regulatory pricing proposals got under scrutiny, a familiar pressure point, the high-ranking member of the administration uttered unto Reuters on Wednesday.
Late view for that! Demand for satellite broadband feels like the third leg to stand on for Reliance Jio and other telecom giants. Since the big three are vehemently attempting to restrain the creation of this technologically unsophisticated competitor, they caress the irony so much that once it becomes a consumer favorite for wireless broadband and the most demanded utility in urban India, it will be just cheap terrestrial echo of satellite broadband with a bung price to pay.
The $20 billion feeding frenzy has been triggered for the said title of 5G dominance. The greatest opportunity and its associated worth to this new age of telephony, data, and broadband speed-fast of 1,71,773 crore was grabbed by Reliance and other titans in the auction for premium spectrum.
For quite some time, we have seen Ambani’s setup locked in a bitter contest against Musk’s Starlink over India’s satellite spectrum. Ambani’s machinations had relentlessly put pressure on New Delhi to auction the airwaves, a move that would effectively put paid to Starlink’s preference for administrative allocation.
Reliance and Airtel struck deals in March to distribute Starlink equipment, but it’s not going to remain a friendly arrangement for very long. Once satellite broadband services are launched in India, giants of telecom become fierce competitors, vying for your business.
The Starlink saga in India is fast reaching a thrilling climax! The Telecoms Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia told The Print that the Elon Musk-led venture was just about getting that license. Gear up India- satellite internet is nearly here!
© Thomson Reuters 2025
(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
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