Starlink Registers Satellite Internet Business In India, Targeting Residents In Rural Areas

Elon Musk's satellite internet network, targeting people in rural India. (photo; starlink)

JAKARTA - Starlink, the satellite internet division of Elon Musk's rocket and billionaire company SpaceX, registered its business in India on Monday, November 1 based on company documents filed with the local government. This is done as they are also preparing to launch internet services in the densely populated country.

Having a local unit, Starlink Satellite Communications Private Limited, will allow the company to apply for the necessary permits from the Indonesian government before it can provide broadband and other satellite-based communications services.

“Glad to share that SpaceX now has a 100% owned subsidiary in India,” said Starlink country director in India, Sanjay Bhargava, in a post on LinkedIn.

“We can now start applying for permits, opening bank accounts, etc,” said Bhargava, who according to his LinkedIn profile only joined the company last October.

Starlink is one of many companies launching small satellites as part of a low-Earth orbit network to provide low-latency broadband internet service worldwide. They will focus specifically on remote areas that are difficult to reach by terrestrial internet infrastructure.

Their competitors in India already exist. Like Amazon.com which came up with Project Kuiper and OneWeb which are jointly owned by the UK government and India's Bharti Enterprises.

In India, Starlink plans to "continue its telecommunications services business" including satellite broadband internet services, content storage and streaming, multi-media communications, among others, according to the company's filing.

It will also handle devices such as satellite phones, network equipment, wired and wireless communication devices, as well as data transmission and reception equipment, he said.

according to a company presentation shared by Bhargava on LinkedIn over the weekend, Starlink said it would focus on "catalyzing rural development" in India through broadband services,

Once authorized to provide services, Starlink operates. In the first phase, they will give away 100 kits for free to schools in Delhi and nearby rural districts. It will then target 12 rural districts across India.

“The company aims to have 200,000 Starlink devices in India by December 2022, 80% of which will be in rural districts,” Bhargava said in the presentation. Starlink has received over 5,000 pre-orders for its devices in India.