Jio Platforms, a subsidiary of Reliance Industries, India’s largest conglomerate and telecom operator, has announced a partnership with Elon Musk’s SpaceX to offer Starlink’s satellite broadband internet services to its customers in India, effective Wednesday.

The agreement, subject to regulatory approval, will enable Jio and SpaceX to explore the use of Starlink to expand Jio’s offerings, while Jio will sell Starlink equipment through its retail outlets and online platforms, as stated in a press release by the telco.

Jio will also establish a mechanism to support customer service installation and activation for Starlink equipment, the company said.

Earlier on Wednesday, Airtel, India’s second-largest telco, announced a similar partnership with SpaceX to offer Starlink services through its channels, which is also subject to regulatory approvals in the country, currently in process with IN-SPACe and the Department of Telecommunications.

As part of the joint announcement, Jio revealed plans to offer SpaceX’s internet services to enterprise customers across the country through its channels, and Jio and SpaceX will assess other areas of cooperation to utilize their infrastructure in the world’s most populous nation.

According to Mathew Oomen, Group CEO of Reliance Jio, “By integrating Starlink into Jio’s broadband ecosystem, we are expanding our reach and enhancing the reliability and accessibility of high-speed broadband in this AI-driven era, empowering communities and businesses nationwide.”

This is not SpaceX’s first attempt to enter the Indian market, with over 950 million subscribers. Previously, Musk’s company attempted to explore the market but had to refund preorders of its Starlink equipment in 2022 after the Indian government intervened, citing the need for necessary approvals.

The recent developments come just weeks after Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited the U.S., meeting with Musk and President Donald Trump, and signing a deal for a global subsea cable project.

In addition to the SpaceX partnership, Jio has been developing its own satellite-based broadband service, JioSpaceFiber, a joint venture with SES. The telco has also tested this service in four districts since 2023 and received In-SPACe approval last year. Similarly, Airtel has been exploring satellite internet through OneWeb for some time.

It will be interesting to observe how Jio and Airtel support Starlink’s rollout in India, considering their existing satellite broadband businesses. The two telcos had opposed the Indian government’s move to ease Starlink’s entry into the market via administrative means instead of an auction process, which is typically used for spectrum allocation.

For now, all parties seem to be on the same page. As Gwynne Shotwell, president and chief operating officer of SpaceX, stated, “We are looking forward to working with Jio and receiving authorization from the Government of India to provide more people, organizations, and businesses with access to Starlink’s high-speed internet services.”