Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) has informed the general public that the satellite broadband provider, Starlink, has neither applied for nor obtained any operational license from PTA to provide internet services in Pakistan.
PTA has already taken up the matter with Starlink to stop taking pre-order bookings from intended consumers with immediate effect as the Company has not been granted any license for the provision of internet services in Pakistan. pic.twitter.com/rlWoUt7SQg
— PTA (@PTAofficialpk) January 19, 2022
PTA has taken up the operational license matter with StarLink
PTA has taken up the matter with Starlink to stop taking pre-order bookings from intended consumers with immediate effect as the company has not been granted any operational license for the provision of internet services in Pakistan. A statement issued in this regard reads; “The directions came in the wake of reports that Starlink, through its website, is asking intended subscribers to pay a deposit of $99 (refundable) as pre-order for equipment/services.”
Read more: Elon Musk’s StarLink is Planning to Launch Satellite Broadband Internet in Pakistan
Last month, the US-based global satellite broadband provider Starlink’s Director the Middle East & Asia, Mr Ryan Goodnight and Head of Global Site Acquisition Mr Ben Macwilliam visited Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) Headquarters. The two sides discussed matters about the provision of satellite broadband connectivity in Pakistan and Starlink’s plans for connecting Pakistan to their global network.
Starlink to refund pre-orders in India
Starlink informed several individuals in India that it will be refunding their preorders, more than a month after the government told the firm to stop booking/rendering the satellite internet service in the Indian market without obtaining an operational license. Starlink had received over 5,000 preorders for its devices in India and was looking to conduct pilots in the country. In late November, the Indian government told the company, which competes with Bharti Group-backed OneWeb and Amazon’s Kuiper, in a public statement that it needs to comply with the regulations and refrain from taking preorders with immediate effect.
Source: GEO News
