By P.K.Balachandran
Colombo, August 20: Elon Musk’s Starlink satellite internet service has been allowed to operate in Sri Lanka having been issued a license to operate it on August 12 at the initiative of President Ranil Wickremesinghe. And according to media reports, the service is to commence in the island in September.
But Starlink faces some problems in Sri Lanka, India and also United States. In Sri Lanka, it is the high cost. In India it is facing headwinds from Indian competitors and security agencies, and is yet to get the green signal to start its service. In the US, customer service is the issue as per Recon Analytics.
“SpaceX’s satellite internet service scored even better than fiber, according to a survey from Recon Analytics. But many users found customer service for Starlink lacking,” said www.pcmag.com in its latest report from the US.
Starlink’s subscriber count in the US is growning, and is now over 1.4 million.
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka sees Starlink’s satellite-based internet system purely as a tool to enhance connectivity without security issues. Starlink has had a remarkably smooth entry into Sri Lanka in contrast to its experience in India where it has been facing headwinds in the form of procedural, business and above all grave security issues.
It was in June this year that Elon Musk and the Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickremesinghe met on the side lines of an international climate conference in Indonesia and set the ball rolling for Starlink’s entry into Sri Lanka.
By August 12, Starlink had got the license to operate. Starlink is not a telecommunications company in Sri Lanka and yet the Telecommunication Regulatory Commission of Sri Lanka (TRCSL) approved it under Sections 17 and 22 of the Telecommunications Regulatory Act, and granted it a frequency license.
The satellite-based high-speed internet connectivity system can reach people in remote areas where signals are weak currently.
Starlink consists of thousands of satellites which orbit the earth at a height of 550 km. Because of its relative proximity to the earth’s surface, its satellites offer considerably faster signals. Justifying his decision to bring Starlink to Sri Lanka, President Wickremesinghe said: “This initiative aims to address Wi-Fi connectivity issues, particularly in areas outside Colombo.”
There were 12.34 million internet users in Sri Lanka in January 2024. Internet penetration is therefore 56.3%. But 9.59 million Sri Lankans (43.7%) remain to be covered.
Apart from variations in the level of economic development and computer literacy in the island, one of the reasons for the digital gap is that signals are weak in many places. This gap can be filled by satellite-based internet which can reach almost any place, both in underserved and unserved regions.
Media reports quoting the Director General of the TRCSL, Madusanka Dissanayake, said that the initial setup cost for the satellite internet service ranges between US$ 400 (LKR 119,954) and US$ 600 (LKR 179,920). The monthly fee will be US$ 99 (LKR 29,688).
One wonders if the social purpose of having a wide internet reach will be served with such high pricing. But Mahesh Yogarajan, an entrepreneur passionate about digital technology, told this writer that arrangements could be made to bring the monthly price down for the end user.
The advantages of going in for a satellite-based internet are far too many not to go in for it, he said. Undersea cables, which are now being used for global internet connections, can be cut due to war or accidents, Yogarajan pointed out.
Conflicts in Europe and the Middle East risk disrupting the undersea network of cables. Much of West and Central Africa was left without internet service during the Houthi attacks in the Red Sea. An estimated 25% of internet traffic between Asia, Europe and the Middle East was impacted after four underwater telecoms cables were cut in the Red Sea, said a report in The Week news magazine.
Yogarajan also said that the adoption of a satellite-based internet system will not drive the existing non-satellite internet providers out of business as their system has its own uses and advantages. Businesses should have both systems.
Issues in India
Starlink had been straining every nerve to enter the big and lucrative Indian market, but its efforts are stymied by procedural, business and above all grave security issues.
Internet penetration in India is quite high, but even then about 35% of its 1.4 billion people are beyond the digital pale. Such a huge divide will jeopardise efforts to reach healthcare through telemedicine and health information to all, points out Tanya Aggarwal of the Observer Research Foundation.
“Additionally, the lack of digital literacy in underserved populations could lead to misinformation, a further deepening the knowledge gap and exacerbating societal polarisation. Therefore, bridging the digital divide is crucial for fostering inclusivity and ensuring that advancements in technology contribute to societal progress rather than exacerbate existing inequalities. Hence the need for satellite-based internet systems,” she argues.
In its anxiety to capture the Indian market, Starlinkeven took subscriptions without waiting for government approvals and got ticked off by the authorities for the indiscretion.
Competition from Indian Corporates
In the broadband sector, Starlink faces stiff competition from well-endowed and well-connected Indian players such as Reliance Jio (owned by the Ambanis), Bharti Airtel (by Sunil Mittal), and Vodafone. However, at present, Bharti Group-backed OneWeb will be the direct competitor for Starlink.
The Ambanis and other Indian entrepreneurs have taken noticeable strides in their bid to get a foothold in the satellite-based Indian internet market. A joint venture between Reliance Industries’ Jio Platforms and Luxembourg-based SES has got approval from the Indian National Space Promotion and Authorisation Centre (IN-SPACe). IN-SPACe is an autonomous nodal agency, approved by the Indian government and will be governed by the Department of Space.
Approvals were also issued to “Orbit Connect India” that will provide satellite-based high-speed internet access. IN-SPACe chairman Pawan Goenka told a news agency that another company, Inmarsat, that hopes to provide high-speed satellite internet, has also received approval. Goenka said that competition will compel global players to drive innovation and reduce pricing.
Security clearance from the Home Ministry is the most critical, especially foreign companies.
Bloomberg said that the Indian government had some “ownership concerns” about Starlink, given the possibility of satellites coming up in China and a lack of clarity on their links with Starlink. The New Delhi-based Mint had reported that the Department of Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) had asked for details of Starlink’s shareholding patterns.
The company is said to have cited US regulations for not providing the details of complete disclosure of ownership as required by the Indian Commerce Ministry. But later, Starlink gave a declaration that it does not have investors from countries with which India shared “land borders” meaning Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal and China.
India has among the most stringent prohibitions in the world against unapproved telecommunications because of terrorist threats from Pakistan.
“Officials have long worried of the possibilities of unmonitored internet communications by terrorists or infiltrators in border areas, leading to blanket restrictions that have sometimes ensnared others in national security investigations,” The Hindu reported last week.
“Travellers are routinely warned not to bring satellite phones into India without written approval from the Department of Telecommunications. For instance, in 2022, Fergus MacLeod, a senior executive at Saudi Aramco, was arrested and briefly held in jail for switching on a satellite phone he brought to India in Chamoli, Uttarakhand while on holiday.”
“In late 2023, a fisherman from Kozhikode district in Kerala was questioned for operating a satellite phone that he said was given to him by a friend in Oman for emergencies when at sea. Phone calls he made to numbers in India were flagged, and Mangaluru police called him for questioning,” The Hindu said.
India has restrictions of WiFi hotspots, requiring every hotspot operator to validate a phone number for each device connecting to the internet.
Foreign travellers often need a physical coupon issued to them at the airport to access hotspots there, The Hindu points out.
Also satellite internet is allowed only for business use, or in places such as the Andaman and Nicobar Islands and Lakshadweep.
International Concerns
Like India, Russia and China have also had worries about security risks from Starlink.
The Russians had complained about security risks arising from Starlink operations in Ukraine. China had scrutinised Starlink satellite internet service in Taiwan and surrounding areas, voicing concerns about its intelligence and reconnaissance capabilities.
However, according to some reports, Starlink is in the final stage of getting approvals. There is light at the end of the tunnel.
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