Advantage for Musk and Starlink as Trump prepares for second term

New Delhi: Donald Trump’s return to the White House as the 47th US president could help Elon Musk, chief executive of satellite operator Starlink, maintain a favorable regulatory position in the nascent satellite communications industry.

Analysts and political experts have suggested that Musk’s support for the Trump campaign could lead to influence that could counter Indian business tycoon Mukesh Ambani’s efforts to persuade the Indian government to change its approach from allocating spectrum to service providers to auctioning it off.

“The Indian government’s approach to administrative allocation of satellite spectrum is already in line with the globally accepted regulatory approach to satellite spectrum,” said Siddhant Kally, an analyst at consulting and research firm Counterpoint. “Given that this already contributes to what Musk asked for. “, the push to maintain administrative allocation of satellite spectrum will gain momentum despite Ambani’s desire to encourage an auction model for the satellite communications industry in India.”

Callie’s assessment is consistent with other stakeholders’ opinions. A senior industry official who works closely with India’s telecom and space sector operators, speaking on condition of anonymity, said: “Musk now has a close ally in the US president, who can urge the Indian government to maintain its position on satellite spectrum provision.” satellite service providers in the country. “In the short term, it could clearly benefit Musk if Trump weighs in on the issue, countering Sunil Bharti Mittal’s recent change of heart on the satellite spectrum issue.”

On October 15, Mittal, chairman of Bharti Enterprises, the holding company of telecom operator Bharti Airtel and satellite operator Airtel-OneWeb, reversed his earlier stance, saying: “Satellite companies that have ambitions to come into urban areas serving high-end retail customers simply need to get telecom licenses, like everyone else, on the same terms, and they will have to buy spectrum and pay license fees as players in the field telecommunications”.

Mittal’s change of heart reflected a long-term push by Ambani-backed satellite company Jio-SES to encourage spectrum auctions instead of administrative allocation from the Centre.

As Musk has become a major backer of Trump’s presidential campaign over the past three months, industry stakeholders see him potentially playing a key role in the new US government. A senior industry consultant who advises tech businesses in India said Musk “could play an advisory role on technology to the Trump government, meaning he would now have significant power to push through policies that favor his businesses around the world.” .

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Musk and India

Most parties agree that the effect could take some time to materialize, depending on how important Musk considers the Indian market to be.

“It is difficult to accurately predict whether Trump’s election will benefit Musk rather than Indian satellite operators. This will entirely depend on how important a part of the Starlink plan India will be. Muskwho could play a significant role in the new US government will have other areas to focus on instead of making India a priority,” said Matthew Chacko, founding partner of law firm Spice Route Legal.

If Musk does push for a favorable position within the Indian government, most stakeholders suggest that the Center may not give up on the spectrum sharing model as it may prioritize its bilateral ties with the US.

“This also makes sense, since satellite spectrum differs in many ways from the spectrum of conventional commercial terrestrial mobile networks. Initially, this should help maintain administrative allocation, which will favor Musk in India thanks to Trump being president,” Counterpoint’s Calley said.

“From a global perspective, there may be more pressure to move away from technology – to avoid adopting policies that are either strictly nationalist, such as India’s telecom regulations. Alternatively, the US government could push for the promotion of technology hubs around the world as an approach to expand its own benefits and two-way ties with strategic geographies,” Spice Route’s Chacko added.