India tells public to shun Musk-backed Starlink

The Indian government advised people against subscribing to Starlink Internet Services, a division of billionaire Elon Musk's SpaceX aerospace company, as it does not have a licence to operate in the country.

A government statement issued late on Friday said Starlink had been told to comply with regulations and refrain from "booking/rendering the satellite internet services in India with immediate effect".

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Starlink registered its business in India on Nov.1. It has begun advertising, and according to the government, it has started pre-selling its service.

Responding to a Reuters email, Starlink said: "No comment for now".

A growing number of companies are launching small satellites as part of a low-Earth orbiting network to provide low-latency broadband internet services around the world, with a particular focus on remote areas that terrestrial internet infrastructure struggles to reach.