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- Elon Musk has said that he wants to bring SpaceX Starlink satellite internet to India.
- Mukesh Amani, the owner of Reliance Jio and Asia's richest man, is his opponent.
- SpaceX wants the government to grant licenses for satellite service, while Reliance calls for a public bidding.
Elon Musk has his eye on the huge Indian market. He says he wants to bring SpaceX’s Starlink satellite Internet service into the country, after meeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi this week.
Musk told reporters Tuesday that he wanted to launch Starlink India because the service is "incredibly helpful" for remote villages. This was reported by India's ANI news agency.
Musk, the CEO of SpaceX is facing a strong competitor in Mukesh Amani, a billionaire.
Ambani is chairman and managing Director of the conglomerate Reliance Industries. Bloomberg Billionaires Index says he is Asia's richest man, with a wealth of $88 billion. Ambani owns Reliance Jio – the largest telecom provider in India, with 439 millions users.
Reliance Jio and Starlink
Reuters reported that the two companies had different views on how to distribute the satellite broadband spectrum owned by the Indian government.
According to Reuters, Musk's Starlink wants the Indian government assign satellite licenses in accordance with global practices, arguing that it is a natural resource which should be shared amongst companies. Ambani’s Reliance Jio takes the opposite position and calls for a public bidding to ensure that both domestic and foreign players are on the same playing field in the traditional telecom sector.
Reliance is continuing to lobby the Indian government in favor of an auction. Reuters cited a source who was directly involved with the issue.
Insider's requests for comments to SpaceX and Reliance were not immediately responded to.
Musk's companies has already failed to start several times in India.
SpaceX began taking Starlink bookings in India by 2021 but had to wait until the authorities approved a license. Tesla, his electric vehicle company, has been eyeing this market for many years. However due to high import duties it has not sold its cars there. But Tesla has not given up.
Musk, speaking to reporters on Tuesday, said: "I'm confident that Tesla will soon be in India.
India's market access barriers are another issue.
India surpassed China earlier this year as the most populous nation in the world. India is also trying to displace China as the global factory.
India's history of trade protectionist policies makes it difficult for businesses to operate in the country. Modi, who came to power in 2014, promised economic reforms including an easing of foreign direct investment policy.
India is still the largest democracy in the world, and so making decisions can be difficult.
The Indian government's self-reliance campaign, launched in May 2020 during the COVID-19 epidemic, has also complicated the situation.
In a report on the Indian market, the US International Trade Administration (ITA) said that US exporters were being urged to manufacture their products locally in order to maintain market access. This is especially true if similar goods have not been produced in India. As part of the self-reliance initiative, India has implemented market access barriers, including tariffs, localization and standard requirements, labeling, price controls and import restrictions.
India, however, is a huge market with many opportunities. However, it will require planning over a longer period of time and adapting strategies to different states. The ITA also added that US companies operating in India would agree.
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By: htan@insider.com (Huileng Tan)
Title: Elon Musk wants to bring Starlink to the Indian market — but he’ll have to get around India’s richest tycoon first
Sourced From: www.businessinsider.com/elon-musk-spacex-starlink-india-market-mukesh-ambani-reliance-tesla-2023-6
Published Date: Fri, 23 Jun 2023 08:46:39 +0000
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