How Starlink's entry will change India's internet ecosystem
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is on a three-day state visit to the United States. During the visit, he met Elon Musk, the CEO of Tesla and SpaceX. The two discussed various matters, including Tesla and Starlink, a satellite internet service. After the meeting, Musk said he plans to bring Starlink to India. What does Starlink's entry mean for India? Let's take a look.
Starlink aims to provide internet connectivity in remote areas
First, we have to understand what Starlink is. It is a satellite constellation system that aims to provide internet connectivity to people in remote areas. As of May 2023, Starlink has over 4,000 satellites in orbit. These satellites are in the low Earth orbit, about 550km from the Earth's surface. Their close proximity makes them better than a single geostationary satellite.
SpaceX plans to create 42,000-satellite network
Like any satellite communications network, Starlink uses radio signals through the vacuum of space. Ground stations receive these signals and broadcast them to satellites in orbit. The satellites then relay the data back to Earth-side users. Starlink's goal is to create a low-latency network that enables edge computing across the planet. SpaceX, which operates Starlink, plans to achieve this with a 42,000-satellite network.
Starlink has shown steady increase in speeds
Starlink currently offers internet speeds of up to 300Mbps to anyone in the world. According to a report by Ookla, it has shown a steady increase in speeds in the US and Canada. In Canada, it recorded a download speed of 93.97Mbps, faster than any other satellite internet provider. In Mexico, it is faster than all fixed broadband providers.
Starlink registered services in India in 2021
Now, let's talk about Starlink and India. This isn't the first time we have seen the two in the same sentence. In 2021, Starlink registered its services in India through a local unit called Starlink Satellite Communications Private Limited. The company planned to reach 200,000 subscribers by December 2022. It even received 5,000 pre-orders after the announcement.
Government asked Starlink to get license before offering services
Things, however, did not go as planned. Toward the end of 2021, the government said Starlink does not have the license to offer its services in India. It warned the company against taking more bookings. The government also notified people not to buy Starlink's services. That put an end to the company's efforts in the country.
India has been aggressively improving internet infrastructure
With the Modi-Musk meeting, we are looking at the possibility of a Starlink re-entry. However, the question remains: Will Starlink add any value to India's internet ecosystem? Especially at a time when the country is aggressively working to increase the reach of 5G. India's over 60% rural population could be the game-changer in this scenario.
Speed, stability remain issues in remote parts of India
India is a country with diverse terrains, ranging from flat lands to treacherous mountains. The terrains determine the difficulty level of building the infrastructure for ground-based internet services. Even then, there will be differences in speed in urban areas and remote parts of the country. Rural internet connections have jumped in the past few years, but speed and stability remain issues.
Starlink can provide stable, high-speed internet in remote locations
Starlink can be the answer to these problems. It does not have to deal with the typical infrastructural issues that broadband providers face in remote parts of the country. Although 300Mbps may not be possible anytime soon, it could still deliver high-speed internet in remote locations. As it does not suffer from catastrophic outages, it will also help in disaster-prone areas.
Starlink could be solution to India's high latency issues
Despite the improvement in internet infrastructure, India has always suffered from high latency. Based on a report by Ookla, India has an average latency of 31ms. The latency will be much higher in remote parts of the country. Meanwhile, Starlink offers a latency of 20-40ms. Starlink could be a solution to India's high latency issues.
Starlink's pricing will be concern in India
Starlink has the potential to improve India's internet efficacy. However, its pricing is a concern. Internet data is cheap in India. That is the only way to attract customers in a price-sensitive market like India. How will Starlink's expensive services fare in that scenario? The plans start at $90 per month in the US. The company will have to reduce its prices in India.
