Elon Musk Starlink / BSNL increased Musk's tension, played a big 'game' before Starlink was launched

Elon Musk Starlink: Due to the increasing demand for satellite communication services in India, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) may soon finalize the satellite spectrum allocation. TRAI has taken rapid steps in this direction and has fixed the last date for allocation of spectrum as December 15. After this, the biggest obstacle in the way of starting satellite-based internet services in India will be removed, and this may give Elon Musk's satellite internet company Starlink a chance to enter India.

Starlink's challenge increased by BSNL's Satellite-to-Device service

Even before the entry of Starlink in India, Indian government telecom company BSNL has taken a big step and launched the country's first Satellite-to-Device service. This service will be able to provide calling and data services without SIM card and mobile network. The information about the launch of this service has been shared by the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) on its official X (formerly Twitter) account. BSNL has partnered with American satellite company Viasat for this service.

BSNL Demo at India Mobile Congress 2024

BSNL recently demonstrated its Satellite-to-Device service during the India Mobile Congress 2024 held at Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi. BSNL presented a live demo of video calling using Viasat's L band satellite at this event. With this new technology, users will now be able to avail call and data services even from areas where there is no availability of traditional mobile networks. This service is specially designed for the purpose of maintaining connectivity in remote areas and during emergencies.

Increased competition for Elon Musk's Starlink and other companies

Elon Musk has been trying to launch Starlink service in India for the last two years, but due to lack of regulatory approval, he has not been able to launch it yet. After the spectrum allocation process is completed by TRAI, along with Starlink, big companies like Jio, Airtel, and Amazon will also be able to start their satellite-based communication services in India.

The launch of BSNL's Satellite-to-Device service can create a strong competition for these companies in India. While this move of BSNL will strengthen communication facilities for rural and remote areas, it will also give a new direction to the competition in the Indian satellite communication market.

BSNL launches India’s 1st Satellite-to-Device service!

Seamless connectivity now reaches India’s remotest corners. pic.twitter.com/diNKjaivFo

— DoT India (@DoT_India) November 13, 2024