Starlink, the satellite internet division of billionaire Elon Musk's rocket company SpaceX, registered its business in India on Monday, company documents filed with the government showed, as it prepares to launch internet services there.
Having a local unit, Starlink Satellite Communications Private Limited, will allow the company to apply for the licences it needs from the government before it can provide broadband and other satellite-based services.
"Pleased to share that SpaceX now has a 100 per cent owned subsidiary in India," Sanjay Bhargava, country director for Starlink in India, wrote on LinkedIn.
"We can now start applying for licences, open bank accounts, etc," wrote Mr Bhargava, who according to his profile joined the company in October.
Starlink is one of a growing number of companies launching small satellites as part of a low-Earth orbiting network to provide low-latency broadband internet services, with a focus on remote areas that terrestrial internet infrastructure struggles to reach.
Its competitors include Amazon.com's Kuiper and OneWeb, which is co-owned by the British government and India's Bharti Enterprises.
In India, Starlink plans to "carry on the business of telecommunication services" including satellite broadband internet services, content storage and streaming, multimedia communication, among others, according to the company filing.
It will also deal in devices such as satellite phones, network equipment, wired and wireless communication devices, as well as data transmission and reception equipment, it said.
Starlink separately said it will focus on "catalysing rural development" in India through its broadband services, according to a company presentation shared by Mr Bhargava on LinkedIn at the weekend.
Once it is allowed to provide services, Starlink will, in the first phase, give 100 devices for free to schools in Delhi and nearby rural districts. It will then select 12 other rural districts.
The company aims to have 200,000 Starlink devices in India by December 2022, 80 per cent of which will be in rural districts, it said in the presentation.
Starlink has received more than 5,000 orders for its devices in India.
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- Premier League-standard football pitch
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When: July 1
Where: Gelsenkirchen Stadium, Gelsenkirchen, Germany
Result:
England 0 Portugal 0
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Profile
Company: Justmop.com
Date started: December 2015
Founders: Kerem Kuyucu and Cagatay Ozcan
Sector: Technology and home services
Based: Jumeirah Lake Towers, Dubai
Size: 55 employees and 100,000 cleaning requests a month
Funding: The company’s investors include Collective Spark, Faith Capital Holding, Oak Capital, VentureFriends, and 500 Startups.
Tips for job-seekers
- Do not submit your application through the Easy Apply button on LinkedIn. Employers receive between 600 and 800 replies for each job advert on the platform. If you are the right fit for a job, connect to a relevant person in the company on LinkedIn and send them a direct message.
- Make sure you are an exact fit for the job advertised. If you are an HR manager with five years’ experience in retail and the job requires a similar candidate with five years’ experience in consumer, you should apply. But if you have no experience in HR, do not apply for the job.
David Mackenzie, founder of recruitment agency Mackenzie Jones Middle East
