Starlink-Airtel Deal to Revolutionalize World Connectivity: Sunil Mittal
In a first-of-its-kind step, Airtel has collaborated with Elon Musk-owned SpaceX to make satellite-based internet services in India affordable by utilizing Starlink. Sunil Bharti Mittal, the Founder and Chairman of Bharti Enterprises, said that this deal was the beginning of a new age of interruption-free global connectivity that would make it possible for people to be always connected, even in the farthest areas of the world, including the sky and sea.
In an address to the 'Mobile World Congress 2025' at Barcelona, Mittal called for telecom and satellite sectors to collaborate their capacities for filling gaps in connectivity around the world. "I am heartened that this is being put into action through active declarations of collaborations among satellite companies and telecommunications operators", he said, while stressing on extending coverage to difficult areas and disconnected zones.
The alliance is the first of its kind in India, subject to SpaceX securing required permissions to offer Starlink in the country. Mittal remembered his 2017 appeal to cut roaming prices, which brought cheap international tariffs and more home network usage overseas. He was confident that the sector would adopt SAT-G technology in addition to 4G, 5G, and future 6G networks as well.
Airtel and SpaceX aim to sell Starlink hardware via Airtel's retail outlets, provide satellite service to commercial customers, and connect remote villages, schools, and health clinics. The partnership will also discuss the use of Airtel's ground infrastructure network to widen Starlink reach so that even the remotest places have access to high-quality, high-speed internet.
This strategic partnership will revolutionize connectivity, merging satellite and ground-based technologies to produce an actually borderless digital world, as envisioned by Mittal for a completely connected world.
