Elon Musk's SpaceX Inks Agreements With India's Top Telecom Providers For Starlink, Expanding Access To 850 Million Users

Elon Musk-led SpaceX has partnered with Jio Platforms Ltd., led by India's richest man, Mukesh Ambani to offer its Starlink satellite internet services in India.

What Happened: SpaceX partnered with Jio a day after inking a similar pact with Jio's rival Bharti Airtel.

Jio intends to distribute Starlink solutions through its retail outlets and online platforms, leveraging its status as the world's largest mobile operator by data traffic.

This partnership aims to expand internet connectivity across the nation. The collaboration is contingent upon regulatory approvals for SpaceX to sell Starlink services in India.

Jio Platforms plans to utilize Starlink's low Earth orbit satellite technology to deliver reliable broadband connectivity across India, including its most remote areas. The company will establish a customer service, installation, and activation support system.

SEE ALSO: Elon Musk’s SpaceX Partners With Airtel To Launch Starlink In India, Weeks After PM Narendra Modi’s US Visit

"We are looking forward to working with Jio and receiving authorization from the Government of India to provide more people, organizations and businesses with access to Starlink's high-speed internet services," said Gwynne Shotwell, President and Chief Operating Officer of SpaceX.

Why It Matters: With the new partnerships, SpaceX has expanded its addressable market by over 850 million users. As per data from the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI), Reliance Jio has over 465 million subscribers and Bharti Airtel has over 385 million subscribers as of Dec. 31, 2024.

This comes weeks after Musk met with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Washington D.C during his visit.

India's Department of Telecommunications had earlier requested security assurances from satellite communication providers like Starlink and Amazon.

Additionally, both Starlink and Amazon's Project Kuiper have been advocating for reduced spectrum charges and long-term licenses to make satellite services more affordable for Indian consumers.

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Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.

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