Starlink and OneWeb Have Clearly Different Strategies for India

Now, this is not to say that OneWeb would completely ignore the B2C or Business to Consumer space. But generally in a business such as satellite broadband services, where the cost of service is too high and the alternatives are easily available, it doesn’t attract the customers much. Especially in the Indian market, where people spend money very carefully, the B2B approach from OneWeb looks like a good strategy to follow.

Starlink Looks Like a B2C Play So Far

Starlink has been announcing that in India, it will be availing 100 free connections which will include 20 schools in Delhi and the remaining 80 in schools in a rural district near the Capital. The company is currently working with NITI Aayog to identify three rural districts from each zone including the North, South, West, and East for offering free internet services.

Starlink is also selling its pre-booking for $99 or Rs 7,500 approximately in India and the company has already received multiple thousand orders from the country. Starlink has said that it is open to forming partnerships with other companies including Vodafone Idea and Reliance Jio, but there’s no saying that something of this sort will definitely happen with Starlink.

Starlink looks a lot more focused on providing connectivity in rural and remote areas of the country, but with the B2C approach. However, it is still too early to say how each company is operating and will operate in the future. But, there’s no denying that currently, B2B looks like the right model for the satellite broadband companies to approach.