New Delhi. Union Communications Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia has said that spectrum for satellite broadband will be allocated instead of auctioned. Indian billionaire industrialists Mukesh Ambani and Sunil Mittal are demanding its auction, while Elon Musk’s company Starlink has advocated its allocation. However, satellite broadband spectrum will not be given free and the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) will decide the price for it, Scindia said in an interview with ‘PTI-Bhasha’.
Scindia said, “Every country has to follow the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), which is the organization that sets the policy for spectrum in space or satellites. ITU has been very clear on the issue of spectrum being given on ‘assignment’ basis. “Also, if you look around the world today, I don’t see a single country that auctions spectrum for satellite.” India is a member of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), the United Nations agency for digital technology. Global competitors such as Musk’s Starlink and Amazon’s Project Kuiper have supported administrative allocation.
Ambani’s Reliance Jio is pushing for allocation of such spectrum through auctions to provide a level playing field to legacy operators who buy spectrum and set up infrastructure like telecom towers. At the same time, Mittal had stressed the need to bid for such allocation at an industry function last month in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Jio and Mittal’s Bharti Airtel are the first and second largest telecom companies in India. They believe that giving away satellite broadband spectrum at a pre-determined price by the government will create an unequal competitive environment, as they will have to compete in auctions to get spectrum for their terrestrial ‘wireless phone networks’. Both the companies are also competing for stake in the satellite broadband sector.
Musk-led Starlink is seeking administrative allocation of licenses in line with global trends as it seeks to enter the world’s fastest-growing mobile telephony and internet market. Scindia said the Telecom Act 2023 passed in December has put the matter in ‘Schedule 1’, which means the allocation of satcom spectrum will be done administratively.
Such allocation would be at a price decided by the government and would allow foreign companies like Starlink to provide voice and data services. If the spectrum were auctioned, it would have become expensive for Starlink to launch services. Starlink has applied for a license to start operations in the country. However, Scindia did not give any information regarding this application.
The minister said that the regulatory process is very clear and transparent. He said that the new Telecom Act has been passed and satellite spectrum is clearly part of ‘Schedule 1’. Scindia said, “…and therefore, we are ready to consider applications from any entity wishing to invest in India at this time. I think only one or two licenses have been given as of now. “Whoever wants to participate, India will definitely welcome him.”