Starlink got the green light from DoT. Now the real work begins.

On 5 May, the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) launched a new set of security instructions for satellite communications companies, taking the total number of compliance norms pertaining to satellites to 29. Since then, the telecom department has issued a letter of intent to Starlink after the company formally agreed to comply with these conditions.

Starlink’s agreement reportedly came after the government tweaked some of its proposed norms, which it shared with satellite players as early as December, people aware of the development told The CapTable. This was due to pushback from foreign satellite companies, including Starlink and Amazon Kuiper, which deemed them untenable. (Amazon Kuiper is next in line to obtain a Global Mobile Personal Communication by Satellite, or GMPCS, licence from the Indian government).