Islamabad, 21 February 2023 (GNP): SpaceX’s Starlink has submitted an application to conduct business in Pakistan. However, the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA), the nation’s telecoms regulatory authority, and other stakeholders have expressed worry over the plan.
According to official documents from the PTA and the Ministry of Information Technology and Telecommunication, the technical plan that Starlink submitted is currently being evaluated by the necessary parties.
Long Distance and International (LD1) and Local Loop (LL) licensees of PTA are permitted to offer satellite-based telecommunication services in their respective licenced regions in conformity with current regulatory regulations.
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On 24 February 2022, Starlink Internet Services Pakistan (Pvt) Ltd (Starlink), which is controlled by Starlink Holdings Netherlands BV, submitted an application for an LDI licence for Pakistan along with 14 x LL licences on 29 April 2022 for all Telecom Regions of Pakistan.
In order to analyse the technical and business plan for Starlink, the Pakistani government is consulting with all relevant parties, including SUPARCO, LEAs, PTA, and FAB. This is because regional and international governments are debating whether to approve or reject Starlink due to various satellite regimes and security concerns.
The documents also showed that the Law Enforcement Agency is looking into Starlink’s security clearance and related technical vulnerabilities, particularly its data hosting outside of the country and utilisation of laser technology from satellite to satellite without using Earth Gateways. After receiving approval from all parties, the PTA will proceed with granting a licence or taking other appropriate steps.
All parties involved were informed, and the technical aspects of the Starlink case are being examined without exclusivity, without interference, and without protection.
To obtain permission for Starlink (SpaceX) to operate in Pakistan, Starlink Internet Services Pakistan (Pvt) Limited addressed the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA).
Pakistan currently has conventional satellites in geostationary orbit (GSO) (at an altitude of 36000 km). Although technically similar to GSO, Starlink operates in Low Earth Orbit (LEO) at a height of between 250 and 500 km, offering low latency connection.