Amazon Leo, the fourth company in the race for providing satellite internet services in India, will have to reapply for a licence because of a newly notified authorization regime that replaces earlier licensing rules, according to government officials and industry executives aware of the matter.
“The application of Amazon Leo, which was under work in progress for the global mobile personal communications by satellite (GMPCS) licence, and of any other company, which was under process for any telecom service, stands cancelled. The companies will now have to reapply fresh for authorization,” a government official said.
The official added that the government was not bound to inform the company. It is understood that a new application has to be submitted.
Starlink, OneWeb and Jio Satellite, which have already got GMPCS licences, will have to migrate to the new regime after the expiry of 20-year licensing term, the official said, adding that they have the option to shift to the corresponding authorization framework. Starlink is a unit of Elon Musk-controlled SpaceX. India's Bharti Enterprises, controlled by Sunil Mittal and family, is one of the largest shareholders in the merged entity Eutelsat OneWeb.
The new authorization framework, notified by the department of telecommunications (DoT) under the Telecommunications Act, 2023, in June, groups services under five broad categories–unified services, access services, wireline access services, internet services and long-distance services.
Satellite communication services fall under the broader telecom services authorization and are not under a separate category. The framework and regulations for companies providing such services, however, are laid under the notified Telecom Act rules.
Amazon Leo, formerly known as Project Kuiper, is the satellite internet service developed and operated by Kuiper Systems LLC, a subsidiary of Amazon. The company is deploying its first-generation broadband satellite system and already has more than 390 satellites in orbit.
According to the company’s website, it will come up with a constellation of up to 5,105 low earth orbit satellites designed to deliver direct-to-device connectivity to customers globally, with deployment beginning in 2028.
Partner search
In India, Amazon Leo is scouting for partners that will offer its satellite internet’s last-mile services. The company has reached out to Tata group-owned Nelco, besides other companies, an industry executive aware of the matter said.
“Amazon might be looking for a face in the country with whom it can jointly provide the satellite internet services. Under this, the last-mile services to consumers will be taken up by the partners and Amazon Leo will only provide the bandwidth,” an industry executive said on condition of anonymity.
Signing up an Indian partner could help Amazon Leo ease its regulatory burden, the executive said, adding that the government is also working on the satellite communication network framework. The framework seeks to allow satellite companies to act as infrastructure providers by supplying capacity to telecom and internet providers.
This, in effect, creates a new category of companies that would operate satellite communication networks, including ground stations. Licensed telecom and satellite internet service providers would then use this infrastructure to deliver satellite internet services to users.
Queries emailed to Amazon Leo last week did not elicit any response till publishing time. DoT did not respond to Mint's queries emailed on Monday.
“Nelco regularly engages with a broad range of industry participants, technology providers and ecosystem stakeholders to explore potential opportunities for collaboration and growth in the evolving satellite communications landscape,” Ritesh Kamdar, company secretary and head of legal at Nelco, said in response to Mint's emailed queries.
Kamdar said the company at this stage does not have any further comments on the specific matters raised in the queries.
“As a practice, we do not comment on market speculation, media reports, ongoing discussions, or potential business arrangements that may or may not be under evaluation,” he said, adding that as and when any partnership, collaboration or business arrangement reaches a stage that requires disclosure, the company makes the appropriate announcements through its official channels.
Security concerns
Currently, the commercial rollout of satellite internet services remains stuck in the country over security concerns and lack of trust around foreign satellite operators.
The government is concerned that satellite operators may bypass Indian gateways and route internet traffic through facilities in other countries. This even after satcom operators clarified to law enforcement agencies that they have the technology to ensure Indian gateways are not bypassed. The operators have also completed security trials, modified their systems to comply with Indian requirements and given undertakings on compliance, industry executives said.
Telecom operator Jio is also building a sovereign low earth orbit satellite constellation for India, challenging Starlink and Amazon Leo. The telecom operator is planning a 1,600-satellite constellation.
The government is yet to notify the broader framework, spectrum charges and other terms for companies to start satellite internet services.