India introduces Space Policy 2023 to allow satellite-based broadband

Earlier this month, the Indian government approved the Indian Space Policy 2023, a much-awaited document that will allow service providers and organizations to use low-Earth orbit (LEO) and medium-Earth orbit (MEO) satellites to provide broadband.

"NGEs [Non-Government Entity] shall be allowed to undertake end-to-end activities in space sector through establishment and operation of space objects, ground-based assets and related services, such as communication, remote sensing, navigation, etc. This would be subject to such guidelines/regulations as prescribed by IN-SPACe," says the policy notified by the government last week. As of now, only geostationary orbit (GEO) providers can provide services in India.

Figure 1: Among other things, satellites could bring broadband to remote areas.
(Source: NASA)

The Indian National Space Promotion and Authorization Center (InSpace) will serve as a "single window agency for the authorization of space activities by Government entities as well as NGEs … ," says the policy document. Essentially, it will act as a link between the India Space Research Organization (ISRO) and private enterprises.

This policy is crucial as several international players like Elon Musk's SpaceX, Bharti Group's OneWeb, the Reliance-SES collaboration and Amazon's Project Kuiper, among others, are trying to capture the satellite-based broadband market.

The satellite-based broadband market is believed to have high potential because almost 50% of India's population is yet to be connected. Most of the unconnected are in remote areas, which are not easy to reach with the terrestrial network. Satellite-based connectivity is seen as a viable option to quickly and economically connect people in such places.

Spurring innovation

The policy also allows private satellite players to set up and operate satellite earth stations and Satellite Control Centres (SCCs). Further, non-government satellite players would be able to use domestic or non-Indian orbital resources to set up space objects for communication services over India and outside the country.

The government has opened up the space sector to spur innovation and growth in this segment. The last few years have witnessed the emergence of a few startups in this field. Media reports suggest that InSpace had already received more than 100 proposals by October of last year. To encourage development of this sector, the policy says, "NGEs would be encouraged to offer national and international space-based communication services through self-owned or procured or leased GSO/NGSO communication satellites."

However, some in the sector say that the policy has not clarified the crucial question of foreign direct investment (FDI). "It is a much awaited policy and paves the way for future growth in space for the private sector with an assurance of level playing field and regulatory certainty. Surprisingly the policy is silent on FDI which was expected. We hope subsequently the FDI Policy for the space sector will be announced to build confidence in investment," says Anil Prakash, Director General at SIA India, an association for the space industry.

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— Gagandeep Kaur, Contributing Editor, special to Light Reading