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Time of India
4 days ago
- Business
- Time of India
Govt, Trai dismiss telecom companies revenue fears on satcom
New Delhi: The government and the telecom regulator have brushed aside fears of telecom operators that satellite communication players such as Starlink and Amazon Kuiper can eat into their revenue, saying the two services are different and satellite services will be offered at a much smaller scale. As per an analysis, Starlink can have a million customers by 2028-29, as against 75 million wireline broadband users and 1.2 billion 4G and 5G users, said officials. Satcom tariffs are set to be around eight times higher than those for terrestrial telecom services while the one-time hardware cost will be 13 times higher. While Starlink is yet to announce tariffs and hardware costs for the Indian market, based on an analysis of tariffs in other countries, officials estimate that the one-time cost of hardware could be ₹20,500-21,000 and the monthly plan could be priced at ₹2,720-2,800. In comparison, telcos offer fixed wired broadband plans in the range of ₹500-1,000, with state-run Bharat Sanchar Nigam offering a plan for as low as ₹329 with 1,000 GB of data. Telecom operators, in a recent joint letter through the Cellular Operators Association of India to various government authorities, had slammed the recommendations of the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) on satcom spectrum pricing , calling them unjustifiably low. Telcos had cautioned the government that if Trai's recommendations were implemented in their current form, they would create a non-level playing field and impact the sustainability of terrestrial telecom services. But the government and the regulator rejected the contention. "Starlink may have around 1035 PB of data capacity over India in a year, which is nothing when compared to capacities of terrestrial operators," said an official, who did not wish to be identified. Live Events The capacity generation potential of Starlink has been derived from what the Elon Musk-owned company has told the Indian authorities. Starlink has applied to IN-SPACe for authorisation of 600 Gbps over India. Taking 75% for downlink purposes, 450 Gbps has been considered for the calculation of download capacity. The numbers arrived at in the comparative analysis are only generic and not made part of any official document by the government and the regulator, according to officials. "The exercise was undertaken to get an idea around satcom and its potential," said a second official. Trai, too, has not taken into account the demand by telcos of a level playing field with satcom players, as the regulator felt that the two services are different. It has presented a comparative analysis of the two services, as per which satcom is nowhere close to the capacities of telcos, said officials. Based on its analysis, Trai said that as per conservative estimates, the network capacity of the typical terrestrial wireless access service operator for providing broadband access to households and enterprises through fixed wireless access technology would be of the order of 168 terabits per second (Tbps) in the near- to-medium-term. On the other hand, the network capacities of major non-geostationary orbit (NGSO)-based fixed satellite service (FSS) providers (such as Starlink and OneWeb) for providing satellite broadband in India would range between 0.6 Tbps and 3 Tbps in the near-to-medium term.
Hindustan Times
6 days ago
- Business
- Hindustan Times
Elon Musk's Starlink to face competition from Amazon's Kuiper satellites? Here's everything we know
Elon Musk's Starlink is set to face some tough competition after years of dominating the market of internet services via satellites. Jeff Bezos' Project Kuiper entered the broadband network market with its first satellite launch in April. Now, the Amazon chief's new project is set to deploy another batch of satellites, as reported by USA Today. As per the outlet, Colorado-based United Launch Alliance is the contractor for the launch. The new batch of Amazon Kuiper satellites could get off the ground as early as Monday, June 16. One of Starlink's biggest advantages has been the SpaceX two-stage Falcon 9 rocket, which is used to launch the satellites into space. Musk's company has sent over 7,000 Starlink satellites into space since 2019, as per its website. The Federal Aviation Administration, the body responsible for licensing commercial rocket launches, recently allowed SpaceX to increase its annual Falcon 9 rocket launches from Southern California's Vandenberg Space Force Base to 50. As for Kuiper, the venture provides an opportunity for Jeff Bezos to compete with the richest man in the world. Kuiper promises to provide high-speed internet across the globe, for which it is establishing a network of satellites connected to antennas, fiber, and other equipment on the ground. Also read: Venice locals protest against Jeff Bezos, Lauren Sanchez's lavish wedding: 'No space for Bezos' The Project Kuiper satellite launch may take place on Monday, June 16. The ULA Atlas V rocket could take off as early as 1:25 pm ET from Florida's Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, as per USA Today. A successful mission could double the number of satellites the company has deployed, but it still has a long way to go to catch up with Starlink. Amazon aims to invest $10 billion in Project Kuiper, including a $140 million processing plant at NASA's Kennedy Space Center to prep satellites for launch. It plans to launch around 3,232 advanced low-Earth orbit satellites in total. If things go as planned, the company said it expects to "begin delivering service to customers later this year." The plan starts at $80 per month with a hardware cost of $349, as per CNET. The high cost of Starlink can be a detriment for some users. This can depend on the 5G service provider opted for. Many 5G providers can give similar speeds to Starlink. Starlink offered a free kit to new customers in select areas if they opted for a 12-month Residential service plan.
Time of India
26-05-2025
- Business
- Time of India
India ramps up satellite monitoring, spectrum safeguards to secure national interests ahead of satcom boom
As satellite-based communication services near commercial rollout, the Indian government is stepping up efforts to secure national interests amid expected dominance by global players such as Elon Musk's Starlink, Jeff Bezos-led Amazon Kuiper, and Eutelsat OneWeb. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now Officials aware of the matter told The Economic Times that a slew of strategic measures are being finalized to boost domestic capabilities in the satcom space. These include setting up a satellite monitoring facility with an outlay of over Rs 930 crore, reserving spectrum and orbital resources for Indian non-geostationary satellite orbit (NGSO) operators, and creating a favourable regulatory ecosystem for establishing gateways within India. 'Some of the measures are likely to be announced through the new Telecom Policy, which will create a roadmap for the next five years or by 2030,' said one official. Another official said the Digital Communications Commission (DCC)—the top inter-ministerial panel within the Department of Telecommunications (DoT)—has already cleared the proposal for the satellite monitoring facility. This facility will track both Indian and foreign satellites operating over Indian airspace and monitor satellite-based communication services. 'Apart from monitoring, the facility would be helpful for mitigating interference from adjacent satellites in the Indian sky and there would be better coordination,' the official added. At present, India has limited presence in the low-earth orbit (LEO) satellite communications market, which is gaining traction due to its high-speed, low-latency potential. In contrast, global players are expanding rapidly: Starlink already has nearly 7,000 satellites in orbit, Amazon Kuiper plans to launch more than 3,000, and Eutelsat OneWeb currently operates over 600 satellites. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now While the Bharti Group holds the largest stake in Eutelsat OneWeb, its operational capacity still falls short of Starlink and Kuiper. 'There is no India LEO satellite operator as of now, but the situation may change in future and that is why the government does not want Indian entities to be on the backfoot,' the official noted, adding that spectrum and orbital slots would be reserved for upcoming Indian ventures. The government is also considering enabling frameworks to promote ground stations and gateway infrastructure from India, potentially allowing the country to serve as a regional hub. These gateways—critical for supporting NGSO satellite constellations—are complex and capital-intensive installations comprising multiple antennas. 'The law enforcement agencies can take a call which countries can be allowed to be served from Indian gateways,' the official said. According to IN-SPACe, India's space economy has the potential to reach $44 billion by 2033, up from a current global share of just 2 per cent to a projected 8 per cent. The commercial rollout of satcom services is expected in the coming months, contingent on spectrum allocation by DoT. The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has already recommended that satcom spectrum be administratively allocated for five years at a fee of 4 per cent of adjusted gross revenue (AGR). 'Already there are many startups in the satcom space, and the government wants India to emerge as a major player in the satellite market. The regulatory framework will be streamlined and simplified to unlock the potential of the satellite market,' said the second official. The preliminary draft of the new telecom policy is expected to include these structural changes, with a focus on building domestic capacity while maintaining sovereign control over satellite infrastructure and data.
Time of India
26-05-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Centre to safeguard national interests as global satcom players seek entry
With satcom services set to be mainstreamed soon, the government is prioritising national safeguards in light of the expected overseas dominance of firms such as Elon Musk-owned Starlink , Jeff Bezos-led Amazon Kuiper , and Eutelsat OneWeb . Officials aware of the details told ET among the measures that will be taken include setting up a satcom monitoring facility with an outlay of over '900 crore to track satellites (Indian and foreign) over Indian skies, reserving orbital and spectrum resources for upcoming Indian satellites, especially NGSO (non- geostationary), and having a favourable ecosystem to set up gateways in India, that will serve local and global operations. "Some of the measures are likely to be announced through the new Telecom Policy , which will create a roadmap for the next five years or by 2030," said one of the officials. A second official said the Digital Communications Commission (DCC), which is an inter-ministerial panel and the highest decision-making body of the Department of Telecommunications (DoT), has already cleared the proposal for setting up the satellite monitoring facility with an outlay of around '930 crore. The facility, once operational, will monitor both local and foreign satellites over Indian skies and satellite-based communication services in the country. "Apart from monitoring, the facility would be helpful for mitigating interference from adjacent satellites in the Indian sky and there would be better coordination," the official said. Currently, the Indian participation is minimal in the satcom market, particularly in the low-earth orbit (LEO), which is increasingly becoming lucrative from a communications point of view. US Billionaires Starlink is the dominant player with around 7,000 satellites already in orbit. Amazon Kuiper, too, is going to have more than 3,000 satellites, while Eutelsat OneWeb has more than 600 satellites in the sky. The Bharti Group is the largest stakeholder in Eutelsat OneWeb, but its capacity is far lower than Starlink and what Kuiper can offer in the coming years. There is no India LEO satellite operator as of now, but the situation may change in future and that is why the government does not want Indian entities to be on the backfoot when they consider entering in the coming years, towards which resources would be reserved for them, officials said. "Already there are many startups in the satcom space, and the government wants India to emerge as a major player in the satellite market. The regulatory framework will be streamlined and simplified to unlock the potential of the satellite market," said the second official. The preliminary draft of the new telecom policy calls for establishing an effective regulatory framework to safeguard the country's interests and sovereign rights to keep optimal orbital and spectrum resources for upcoming Indian satellites, especially NGSO. Also, there would be an enabling framework for provisioning ground stations as a service (GSaaS) from India on a global level. India can act as a hub of gateways for serving countries. Setting up satellite earth station gateways for NGSO systems is a capital-intensive exercise and also very complex in nature consisting of multiple antennas. The NGSO operators, therefore, want to establish an optimum number of gateways to serve various jurisdictions across the globe.
Economic Times
25-05-2025
- Business
- Economic Times
Centre to safeguard national interests as global Satcom players seek entry
Live Events (You can now subscribe to our (You can now subscribe to our Economic Times WhatsApp channel With satcom services set to be mainstreamed soon, the government is prioritising national safeguards in light of the expected overseas dominance of firms such as Elon Musk-owned Starlink , Jeff Bezos-led Amazon Kuiper , and Eutelsat OneWeb Officials aware of the details told ET among the measures that will be taken include setting up a satcom monitoring facility with an outlay of over '900 crore to track satellites (Indian and foreign) over Indian skies, reserving orbital and spectrum resources for upcoming Indian satellites, especially NGSO (non- geostationary), and having a favourable ecosystem to set up gateways in India, that will serve local and global operations."Some of the measures are likely to be announced through the new Telecom Policy, which will create a roadmap for the next five years or by 2030," said one of the officials.A second official said the Digital Communications Commission (DCC), which is an inter-ministerial panel and the highest decision-making body of the Department of Telecommunications (DoT), has already cleared the proposal for setting up the satellite monitoring facility with an outlay of around '930 facility, once operational, will monitor both local and foreign satellites over Indian skies and satellite-based communication services in the country. "Apart from monitoring, the facility would be helpful for mitigating interference from adjacent satellites in the Indian sky and there would be better coordination," the official the Indian participation is minimal in the satcom market, particularly in the low-earth orbit (LEO), which is increasingly becoming lucrative from a communications point of is the dominant player with around 7,000 satellites already in orbit. Amazon Kuiper, too, is going to have more than 3,000 satellites, while Eutelsat OneWeb has more than 600 satellites in the sky. The Bharti Group is the largest stakeholder in Eutelsat OneWeb, but its capacity is far lower than Starlink and what Kuiper can offer in the coming is no India LEO satellite operator as of now, but the situation may change in future and that is why the government does not want Indian entities to be on the backfoot when they consider entering in the coming years, towards which resources would be reserved for them, officials said."Already there are many startups in the satcom space, and the government wants India to emerge as a major player in the satellite market. The regulatory framework will be streamlined and simplified to unlock the potential of the satellite market," said the second preliminary draft of the new telecom policy calls for establishing an effective regulatory framework to safeguard the country's interests and sovereign rights to keep optimal orbital and spectrum resources for upcoming Indian satellites, especially NGSO. Also, there would be an enabling framework for provisioning ground stations as a service (GSaaS) from India on a global level. India can act as a hub of gateways for serving up satellite earth station gateways for NGSO systems is a capital-intensive exercise and also very complex in nature consisting of multiple antennas. The NGSO operators, therefore, want to establish an optimum number of gateways to serve various jurisdictions across the globe.
