Satcom Showdown: Jio-SES vs Airtel-OneWeb vs Elon Musk's Starlink

The eighth edition of India Mobile Congress 2024 in Delhi concluded recently, not only showcasing cutting-edge telecommunication technology but also serving as a platform to debate on satellite communication.

- Rakesh Kumar

The most debated topic of the four-day event was whether the spectrum used for satellite communication should be allocated administratively or auctioned off.

Under the allocation route, the government would allocate spectrum to qualified companies, while for an auction route, companies would make bids for spectrum above the reserve price set by the government.

Indian telecom giants Reliance Jio, Bharti Airtel, and Vodafone Idea Limited favoured auctioning, while foreign players including Elon Musk's Starlink and Amazon's Project Kuiper advocated for administrative allocation, aligning with global practices.

The foreign players favoured administrative allocation because satellite spectrum differs from terrestrial spectrum and is a shared resource.

In simple terms, the same frequencies can be reused at the same geographic locations by multiple satellite networks.

The Indian government also expressed support for administrative allocation, citing global norms and technological constraints.

In this article, we will delve into the technological capabilities of the three major Indian telecom operators and explore the intricacies of satellite spectrum, services, and their potential applications.