Yet, The Question Experts Are Asking is Whether it will at all ring a bell with rural folk in remote areas, which are its target audience, and that too at a price Way higher plants. Even so, some experts are of the View that the Sheer Visibility of Brand Starlink and its ICON MUSK May Provide an early booster dose to a service that may not find many takes many take on.
On Tuesday, Sunil Bharti Mittal-Backed Bharti Airtel Announced a Partnership to Offer Starlink's Satellite Internet Service to Consures Across India, Eveen as its expecting Joint Onweb will be used to offer satellite internet to businesses.
The day after, Mukesh Ambani-Backed Jio Platforms Limited Announced The Same Partnership With Starlink-To Satellite Internet Service to Customers, Once the Latter Receives The ministry of communications. In a press statement, the company added that Reliance Jio's Websites and Retail Outlets will sell starlink's 'terminals' – the equiparent of a dish receive in satellyte television television Customer Service on Starlink's Behalf.
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However, Industry Stakeholders have raised questions on how vital the satellite service would be, especially in remote area that is its corr proposition.
A Veteran Telecommunications Industry Consultant Pointed Out that even by fY28, The Satellite Internet Services Industry is unlikely to cross $ 100 million ( 870 Crore) in Cumulative Annual Revenue.
“The services are! Country. “At setup costs of over 30,000, who will buy starlink in a remote Village Somewhere in the Hills of North-East India? “
Siddhant cally, Telecom Research Analyst at Market Researcher Counterpoint India, Concurred. “Given the cost, for the first few years, the target customers for this might not be the average house Won't an initial boom in adoption like 5G Fixed Wireless Access Services, but as the technology evolves and becomes cheaper, the customer base will wideen. “
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A Second Industry Consultant, Pointing to India's Huge Market, Said That Starlink will have to offer specialized pricing for India, “But that does not means that that that is trachs Out the service with jio and airtel means that the service provider will Reach Maximum Market Breadth without Than a partnership with the instables.
In January 2022, Starlink's Initial Rollout of Pre-Registering Users was Halted by the Ministry of Communications, Citing Its Lack of Operating License in the Country. At the time, within less than one year, reports had underlined that starlink had gathered over 5,000 pre-registrations-even with a deposit fee of 99 ( 7,500 at 2021's forex rates).
In comparison, terrestrial fiber broadband services in India are available at half the cost, and no additional deposit fee, with speeds of up to 1 gigabit per second (GBPS). This disparity is expected to make satcom services hard to sell, but anticipation Around starlink may give bot airtel and jio a clear fillip to rope in users.
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“For Satellite Internet to Be Profitable, It Needs A Broad Customer Base, and India's Vast Market offers a Key Opportunity for Low-Earth Observation Systems to Buland A Customer Base,” Countterpoint's calily said. Airtel expand distribution and rope in more users. “
On 5 March, Mint Reported that Satellite Spectrum Allocation by the Center is Likely to take place by June this year, Following which operators will be free to commense their services in the counstone. While Airtel and Jio Alredy Have the Necessary License and have conducted on-Ground Satellite Internet Trials in India, Starlink is Yet to Receive Its License.
In the long run, stakeholders believe that these partnerships might be Crucial in building a base by roping in customers – et a subSidized Fee. Subsequent to that, the services could see independent growth too.
“Each of these companies will need to leverage their core strengths to attract customers –one may focus on its extended extended network, with the other peroritizes superiorior customer support, competing on Price will be challenging. Ultimately, Consures Stand to Benefit, Gaining an additional layer of connectivity Along
And read | Airtel, Jio Square Off Against Elon Musk's Starlink in India's Satellite Broadband Race
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