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The telecom department is reviewing the applications of Amazon Leo (formerly Kuiper) to launch satcom services in the country, while it has rejected similar applications from Tata Group firm Nelco and Hiranandani Group’s Yotta Network.
Minister of state for communications Chandra Sekhar Pemmasani told the Rajya Sabha that Nelco, Yotta Network Services, Bharti Group-backed Eutelsat OneWeb India Communications, Jio Satellite Communications, Starlink Satellite Communications, Amazon Kuiper Services India and Connect4Sure Technologies were among the companies that submitted satcom applications in the past five years.
While Nelco and Yotta’s applications were rejected, Connect4Sure withdrew its application. Till now, only OneWeb, Jio and Starlink have received approval for a unified licence to provide global mobile personal communication by satellite (GMPCS) service.
Pemmasani also highlighted that satcom providers can cover underserved and rural areas, including remote, coastal, border and mountainous regions of the country, where terrestrial media like optical fibre is hard to install. As a result, the government is keen to launch satcom services.
This comes days after it was reported that Starlink will have to submit a fresh application for approval to launch direct-to-device (D2D) connectivity in India. The company had received final approval last year from the Indian National Space Promotion and Authorisation Centre (IN-SPACe) to commence commercial operations in the country.
The Maharashtra government has also signed a letter of intent with the Elon Musk-owned company to deploy satellite-based internet services for government institutions in the state.
However, all three companies that have received satcom approval are yet to formally roll out services. They are waiting for the telecom department to allot spectrum and formalise pricing for the satcom bandwidth. The government had previously indicated that satcom services will likely be launched in the country by January.
The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) recommended in May last year that satcom operators be assigned spectrum administratively for a period of five years, extendable by another two years. It also suggested pricing the spectrum at 4% of the operators’ adjusted gross revenue (AGR), subject to a minimum annual spectrum charge of INR 3,500 per MHz. However, the specifics of the policy are yet to be ironed out.
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