The Indian government advised people against subscribing to Starlink Internet Services, a division of billionaire Elon Musk’s SpaceX aerospace company, as it does not have a licence to operate in the country.
A government statement issued late on Friday said Starlink had been told to comply with regulations and refrain from “booking/rendering the satellite internet services in India with immediate effect”.
Starlink registered its business in India on November 1. It has begun advertising, and according to the government, it has started pre-selling its service.
Asked about this, Starlink said in an email: “No comment for now”.
A growing number of companies are launching small satellites as part of a low-Earth orbiting network to provide low-latency broadband internet services around the world, with a particular focus on remote areas that terrestrial internet infrastructure struggles to reach.
•Reuters with additional editing by Jim Pollard
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