Starlink’s India debut: the back-story

This week, Indian telecom giants Reliance Jio and Bharti Airtel dominated the news by announcing partnerships with Elon Musk’s SpaceX to offer broadband services via Starlink in India. The first announcement came from Sunil Mittal-led Bharti Airtel, followed by a similar announcement from Reliance Jio the next day. Both companies emphasized that the agreement is contingent on SpaceX receiving the necessary regulatory approvals to operate Starlink in India. The announcement surprised many, particularly because Reliance Jio, which is considered a major competitor to Starlink in India, has long been at odds with SpaceX over satellite communication spectrum allocation.