Elon Musk is battling Mukesh Ambani on India’s satellite internet

But it is not just Mr Ambani who supported the auction route.

Sunil Mittal, chairman of Bharti Airtel, has said that companies that want to serve urban, high-end customers “have to take telecom licenses and buy spectrum like everyone else., external”.

Mr Mittal – India’s second-largest mobile operator – together with Mr Ambani controls 80% of the country’s telecom market.

Such resistance is a “defensive move aimed at raising costs for international players seen as a long-term threat,” said Mahesh Uppal, a telecommunications expert.

“Although there is no direct competition, satellite technologies are developing rapidly. Telecom companies (in India) with large terrestrial businesses fear that satellites could soon become more competitive, challenging their dominance.”

Clearly, the promise of the vast Indian market is at stake. Nearly 40% of India’s 1.4 billion people still don’t have internet access, with rural areas accounting for the bulk of cases, according to consultancy EY-Parthenon.

For context, China is home to nearly 1.09 billion internet users, which is almost 340 million more than India’s 751 million., externalaccording to DataReportal, which tracks global online trends.

India’s internet adoption rate still lags behind the global average of 66.2%, but recent surveys show that the country is closing the gap.

If priced right, satellite broadband could help bridge some of this gap, and even aid the Internet of Things (IoT), a network that connects everyday objects to the Internet, allowing them to talk to each other.

Prices will be crucial in India, where mobile data is among the cheapest globally – just 12 cents per gigabyte, externalModi said.

“A price war (with Indian operators) is inevitable. Musk has deep pockets. There is no reason why he cannot offer free services for a year in (some) places to gain a foothold in the domestic market,” said Prasanto K. technology analyst. Starlink has already reduced prices in Kenya and South Africa.