• Bharti Airtel has struck a landmark agreement to offer Starlink satellite broadband services in India
• The move marks a major breakthrough for Elon Musk’s SpaceX, of which Starlink is part, in the world’s most populated country – one that lacks traditional fixed broadband infrastructure
• The deal will also come as a blow to Eutelsat, which already has a satellite broadband agreement (and a long-standing relationship) with Airtel 

In what looks like a fantastic deal for Bharti Airtel and something of a coup for Elon Musk, the giant Indian telco has struck an agreement with the billionaire’s SpaceX to offer Starlink’s satellite broadband services in India, the world’s most populated country (with more than 1.4 billion people) and a market with extremely sparse traditional fixed broadband infrastructure, making it ripe for satellite broadband service uptake. 

The relationship is intriguing, as Bharti Airtel already has a long-standing relationship with Eutelsat’s OneWeb, a low-earth orbit (LEO) satellite services competitor to Starlink: Bharti Airtel was one of the companies, along with Eutelsat, that saved OneWeb from collapse and helped it find a new home as part of the Eutelsat group. 

In addition, Airtel and SpaceX/Starlink/Musk were in rival lobbying camps last year when the Indian government was deciding how to allocate satellite broadband licences – see India’s top telcos apply satellite, AI policy pressure at IMC24.

While Airtel and India’s largest telco, Reliance Jio, favoured an auction process, SpaceX lobbied for a licence allocation process and it was the latter that was eventually chosen by the Indian authorities, though licences have yet to be awarded, as Airtel pointed out in its announcement.   

“This is the first agreement to be signed in India, which is subject to SpaceX receiving its own authorisations to sell Starlink in India,” noted Airtel. “It enables Airtel and SpaceX to further explore how Starlink can complement and expand Airtel’s offerings, and how Airtel’s expertise in the Indian market complements SpaceX’s direct offerings to consumers and businesses. Airtel and SpaceX will explore offering Starlink equipment in Airtel’s retail stores, Starlink services via Airtel to business customers, opportunities to connect communities, schools, and health centres, among many others, in even the most rural parts of India. Airtel and SpaceX will also explore how Starlink could help expand and enhance the Airtel network, as well as SpaceX’s ability to utilise and benefit from Airtel’s ground network infrastructure and other capabilities in India,” the telco added. 

Airtel is also positioning the deal as complementary to its Eutelsat relationship. “By adding Starlink – in addition to its existing alliance with Eutelsat OneWeb – to its offerings, Airtel will further its ability to offer nationwide connectivity and connect previously underserved areas, particularly those with limited to no coverage today. With Starlink enterprise suite, Airtel will be able to offer enterprises, businesses, and communities comprehensive and seamless connectivity packages.” 

Gopal Vittal, Bharti Airtel’s managing director and vice chairman, noted: “Working with SpaceX to offer Starlink to Airtel customers in India is a significant milestone and further demonstrates our commitment to next-generation satellite connectivity. This collaboration enhances our ability to bring world-class high-speed broadband to even the most remote parts of India, ensuring that every individual, business and community has reliable internet. Starlink will complement and enhance Airtel’s suite of products to ensure reliable and affordable broadband for our Indian customers, wherever they live and work. Technology is always evolving and we’re committed to staying at the forefront of innovation so that we can continue to bring the best connectivity experience for our customers. This includes collaborating with global leaders like SpaceX to extend our reach and add new coverage to customers throughout all of India.” 

Gwynne Shotwell, president and chief operating officer of SpaceX, added: “We are excited to work with Airtel and unlock the transformative impact Starlink can bring to the people of India. The team at Airtel has played a pivotal role in India’s telecom story, so working with them to complement our direct offering makes great sense for our business.”

Musk has long targeted India as an important and prime potential growth market for Starlink and now has the chance to offer his LEO operation’s services to the market via one of the biggest players and brands in India’s communications sector. The announcement comes only weeks after Musk, who is playing a key role in Donald Trump’s US administration, met with India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi to discuss collaboration between Indian and US companies in technology innovation, AI, the space sector and sustainable development.   

What happens next will be interesting: SpaceX/Starlink is now certain to get its licence but will need to formulate a pricing strategy that is suited to Indian budgets, though this is of course something that Musk and his team will have already figured out. 

While India is a major market for mobile data connectivity, fixed broadband lines are scarce. As a result, both Bharti Airtel and Reliance Jio have had some degree of success with the 5G fixed wireless access (FWA) services they have launched and marketed in the past 12 to 18 months and now Starlink looks set to be added to the list of broadband connectivity options available to enterprises, government entities and individuals in India. 

- Ray Le Maistre, Editorial Director, TelecomTV