Path cleared for global satellite communication companies

In a move that will enable global satellite communication companies like OneWeb (a consortium led by Airtel CEO Sunil Mittal) and Elon Musk’s Starlink to offer high-speed broadband services more efficiently to customers in India, the government has removed the artificial caps on the data rates they can offer, which were pegged at speeds of 2Mbps to 4Mbps.

The new technology, based on low earth orbit satellites (LEO), which is being used by the two companies, can offer broadband speeds of over 5GBPS. What’s more, they are already working on R&D to come close to 5G mobile speeds. Starlink has started offering beta services to a limited number of consumers in the US with speeds of around 150 Mbps and is reportedly planning to double that speed soon.

The recent amendments to the Standards for Interface Requirements for Communications and Broadcast Networks issued by the Telecom Engineering Centre (TEC) under the Department of Telecommunications has done away with the legacy regulation of a low data speed limit. This is applicable to all satellite communication services companies in the country.

OneWeb, which has applied for a licence to operate satellite services in India, is building a satellite configuration of 648 satellites across the world. Starlink, which plans to have over 1000 satellites across the globe, has also stated its intent to come to India.

The TEC’s amendment allows satellite communications services to use the high-capacity Ka band between 27 Ghz and 40 Ghz (currently, they are allowed to use only C and Ku bands) for both broadband and broadcasting services by direct-to-home (DTH) operations. This will allow companies to provide high-speed broadband and help DTH operators offer many more channels and very high-resolution display.

Says T V Ramachandran, president of the Broadband India Forum, which represents satellite companies, amongst others: “The government’s move will help deliver significant benefits to the end consumer by way of high broadband speeds, better quality of service, and also high capacity.”

Ramachandran says the earlier artificial caps on data rates, which have now been removed, had not kept pace with the dramatic changes in satellite technology. The caps on data rates which were linked to fixed satellite antenna sizes that limited throughput, have also been removed.

Lauding the changes, a senior executive of a top satellite company says, “The removal of these legacy rules will be important enablers for high-speed broadband. We are expecting even bigger changes in the satellite communications policy”

Adds a senior executive of a broadcasting company, “TRAI had recommended that Ka band be used for broadcasting services, and this has now been implemented by the government. The move will increase overall capacity, enabling more television channels to be accommodated.”

OneWeb is expected to roll out services in India in the first half of 2022. The company is making nearly one satellite a day and has been launching 30-40 satellites every month. Business Standard News