Satellite-based communication providers and telecom operators have reportedly agreed on the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India’s (TRAI) proposal to authorise communications satellite operators to act as infrastructure providers and partner with existing telecom operators to extend commercial services to subscribers.
At an open house discussion organised by TRAI recently, satellite players including Amazon Leo and telecom operators such as Vodafone Idea Limited and Bharti Airtel, along with enterprise communications provider Tata Communications, endorsed the proposal to create a separate layer for network providers and service operators.
However, Broadband India Forum (BIF) opposed the move, arguing that the emerging sector should be recognised as a standalone, independent service rather than a wholesale infrastructure layer. As per BIF, defining satellite communications purely as an infrastructure layer contradicts the Telecommunications Act, 2023, which explicitly categorises satellite communications as a distinct service.
Reliance Jio, which has announced plans to launch its own satellite fleet, also objected to a dual-layer framework, describing it as unnecessary given that existing frameworks for satellite gateways and virtual network operators already adequately address the issue.
The push to separate network and service layers for satellite communications follows the DoT’s rejection in January 2025 of TRAI’s earlier proposal for a unified framework, on the grounds that it would create significant business inefficiencies.
Further, in their written submissions to the regulator, satellite communication players including Starlink, Amazon Leo and OneWeb welcomed the creation of a separate layer, saying it would allow them to operate on a satellite communication network-as-a-service model, with satellite operators focusing on wholesale capacity while retail obligations are handled by partners.
