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Billionaire Mukesh Ambani-controlled Jio Platforms Ltd. announced a surprise pact with SpaceX to offer Starlink Inc.’s satellite Internet services in India, a day after rival Bharti Airtel Ltd. unveiled a similar arrangement.
The twin deals essentially turn Elon Musk’s Internet service from challenger to ally of India’s powerful wireless carriers, underscoring his growing global influence as US President Donald Trump’s close adviser. It also marks a volte-face by Ambani’s Jio and Bharti — controlled by tycoon Sunil Mittal — which were earlier opposed to the idea of Starlink getting airwaves cheaply.
The tie-ups are subject to SpaceX receiving regulatory approval to sell Starlink in India. Yet it shows a recognition by the two Indian billionaires that the arrival of Musk’s companies in the world’s most-populous country is inevitable, and that they don’t want to take him on in a straight fight.
Tesla is also gearing for its India entry by shipping thousands of cars to the country and setting up showrooms.
“Reliance Jio and Bharti are no longer treating satellite broadband as a threat but as core infrastructure they can lease,” said Utkarsh Sinha, managing director at Bexley Advisors, a boutique investment bank firm. “This move ensures they remain gatekeepers of India’s Internet expansion, even as Starlink scales.”
The new deal agreement will see Ambani’s firm offer Starlink equipment through its retail outlets as well as through its online storefronts, a Jio statement said Wednesday. The two companies will also explore how they can boost each other’s offerings.
Crucial Market
While Starlink has collaborated in developing nations — in Indonesia for offering internet and with the MTN Group for satellite trials across Africa — the India market is far more crucial for Musk’s businesses as Starlink continues to be shut out of China and Tesla Inc. sees declining sales.
The world’s richest man is also seeing his growing political notoriety affect sales in places like Europe and Canada.
The Indian government’s decision in October last year to allocate satellite spectrum at a pre-decided price stoked fears that Starlink may compete with terrestrial networks and chip away some of Reliance Jio Infocomm Ltd. and Bharti’s subscriber base. Reliance Jio and Bharti are India’s two largest wireless carriers.
The Indian firms have secured Starlink’s marketing and distribution rights to tap a segment of users that live in remote areas with patchy wireless connectivity, according to people familiar with the internal discussions who asked not to be identified as the information is private.
“The reality is that Starlink’s is not going to be a volume play anytime in a hurry” and its primary market in India will be users in remote locations instead of the urban data-heavy user base that Reliance Jio and Bharti fight over, according to Sinha.
Remain Key Players
The alignment by Jio and Bharti “ensures that they remain key players in shaping satellite broadband’s adoption in India rather than being sidelined by a disruptive outsider,” he said.
Shares of Reliance Industries Ltd., Jio’s parent, rose as much as 1.3% while Bharti surged as much as 3.3% during Mumbai trading before erasing the gains.
“Satellite service providers that have spare capacity could keep the pricing competitive in India considering the prevailing dynamics in India,” said Kunal Vora, head of India equity research at BNP Paribas, adding that Starlink’s entry was unlikely to significantly impact the Indian market “in the near to medium term.”
Pricing, however, is going to be key. A Starlink connection costs as much as $120 per month in the US, besides equipment that starts from $349. In Kenya, it’s $15.
India’s satellite communication market is expected to more than double to $6.8 billion by 2030 from $3.1 billion this year, according to research firm Mordor Intelligence.
The partnerships come less than a month after Musk met Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the US last month where they discussed “space, mobility, technology and innovation,” according to a Feb. 13 post on X by Modi.
The Indian government faces the task of luring foreign investment from heavyweights like Musk and balancing it with the demands of local giants amid broader trade deal negotiations with the US.
Starlink still needs approvals from India’s telecom and home ministries, including complying with local security norms. There’s no clarity on when these will be sorted.
OneWeb, JioSpaceFiber
The local telecom regulator is also yet to announce the price satellite-Internet firms need to pay for securing airwaves — a key element that will influence the cost of a Starlink connection for consumers in India.
Mittal and Ambani’s empires, meanwhile, are also vying for a piece of India’s satellite broadband market with their own ventures.
Mittal is an investor in OneWeb Ltd., Starlink’s rival, and looking to roll out services in India.
Reliance Jio, which formed a joint venture with Luxembourg-based SES in 2022, unveiled JioSpaceFiber in October 2023 with plans to deliver high-speed satellite Internet “at highly affordable prices.”
--With assistance from Ruchi Bhatia and Santosh Kumar.
