Starlink becomes the third satellite communications operator with full regulatory clearance to operate in the Indian market
In sum – what to know:
Starlink enters India market – Starlink has received final regulatory approval from IN-SPACe to operate satellite broadband services in India, becoming the third satcom operator to do so after Eutelsat OneWeb and Jio-SES.
Commercial launch still pending – Despite clearance, Starlink must still secure trial spectrum and meet security requirements set by the Department of Telecommunications before launching full-scale operations.
TRAI proposes spectrum fees – TRAI’s recommendations include a 4% AGR-based fee and urban-rural price differentiation, which the DoT is expected to finalize as part of India’s satellite spectrum framework.
Starlink, the satellite internet service operated by Elon Musk’s SpaceX, has received final approval from the Indian National Space Promotion and Authorization Centre (IN-SPACe), to begin offering broadband services in the country, according to local press reports.
With this approval, Starlink becomes the third satellite communications operator, after Eutelsat OneWeb and the Reliance Jio–SES joint venture, to obtain all required regulatory clearances to operate in the Indian market.
Last month, Starlink had secured a global mobile personal communication by satellite (GMPCS) license, a key step toward launching services. The report noted that the company’s Gen 1 low-Earth orbit (LEO) constellation includes 4,408 satellites with a total capacity of 600 Gbps across India.
Despite the approval, Starlink cannot immediately begin full commercial operations as it still needs to acquire trial spectrum and meet national security compliance conditions set by the Department of Telecommunications (DoT). These steps are mandatory before any commercial service can begin.
Eutelsat OneWeb and Jio-SES had obtained trial spectrum in 2024 and were granted six-month extensions as they await final security clearances. Starlink is also expected to receive trial spectrum shortly, according to the report.
The DoT is working on spectrum pricing and allocation guidelines based on recommendations from the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI). TRAI has suggested a model based on administrative allocation with a 4% fee on adjusted gross revenue (AGR) for five years.
Eutelsat OneWeb received its GMPCS license in August 2021, while Jio Satellite secured its authorization in March 2022. However, both companies waited nearly two years before receiving the final permit from India’s space regulator, which finally approved their operations in November 2023 and June 2024, respectively.
India has implemented stringent operational requirements for satellite communications, including legal interception capabilities. Service providers are also barred from linking customer data or services to infrastructure located outside the country and are prohibited from processing user data beyond national borders.
In addition, the rules stipulate that companies must indigenize at least 20% of their ground infrastructure within a few years of launching operations. Operators are also required to receive separate security clearances for each satellite gateway and hub site in India, and must comply with specific monitoring and lawful interception infrastructure requirements, the reports added.
Earlier this year, Indian carriers Bharti Airtel and Reliance Jio Infocomm had announced separate agreements with SpaceX to offer Starlink’s broadband services to customers in India once the latter secured all permits.
Bharti Airtel’s chairman Sunil Mittal has previously called on governments and regulators to incentivize telecom operators to expand rural connectivity, support industry consolidation and lower spectrum costs.
Speaking at Mobile World Congress (MWC) 2025 in Barcelona, he emphasized the urgent need for cooperation between terrestrial and satellite operators to close the connectivity gap for the last 400 million people worldwide.
Mittal stressed that consolidation in the telecom sector is essential to enable operators to invest heavily in infrastructure and partner with satellite providers. He argued that the industry should focus on sharing resources rather than duplicating investments.
