India's telecom regulator assessing Starlink system before accepting beta

Elon Musk's space company SpaceX recently launched its Starlink satellite internet service that claims to be capable of delivering 50Mbps to 150Mbps internet access to "any part" of the Earth under the sky. The global roll-out of this internet service is expected to be completed by 2022.

SpaceX has offered to pre-sell its Starlink satellite internet service in India, and the country's Department of Telecom (DoT) has begun assessing whether this service corresponds with Indian technology and telecom laws.

The Indian telecom regulator needs to legally ensure that accepting Starlink's beta services for test is in line with Indian laws, in the interest of the consumers, and will have no national security implications.

DoT officials have revealed to the Indian media that the provisions under which Starlink is being judged include - the Indian Telegraph Act, 1885, the Indian Wireless Telegraphy Act, 1933, India's satcom policy, 2000, and the Information Technology (IT) Act, 2000.

Earlier in March, Starlink sent emails to waitlisted subscribers, telling them that the service is open to pre-orders for a refundable deposit of $99 (7,470 INR). The fee guarantees a reserved installation slot for registered users once the service goes live in India.

While the government is mulling over Starlink's India entry, tech policy think tank Broadband India Forum (BIF) alerted Indian authorities that the Musk-led satellite internet service has yet to obtain a suitable licence or authorisation, until which, Starlink's India-entry must be stalled.

One of the world's richest men, Elon Musk, has been expanding other businesses in India from the onset in 2021.

Earlier in January, Musk's electric vehicle company Tesla officially registered with India's Registrar of Companies and chose to flag off its research and development centre in India's own "Silicon Valley", Bengaluru city. The company is now looking for appropriate showroom and service centre locations in Delhi, Mumbai, and Bengaluru. Tesla's Model 3 sedan cars could run on Indian roads by mid-2021.

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SpaceX launches 60 Starlink communications satellites
Washington DC (UPI) Apr 7, 2021
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