Advocacy group in India calls for criminal prosecution of Musk and Starlink
A non-profit advocacy group in India, dubbed Telecom Watchdog, has demanded that the Indian government prosecute Elon Musk and Starlink because it asks for and gets $100 deposits from customers without guaranteeing a specific delivery date for its Starlink internet service.
The organisation further asked the telecom regulator to take effective steps to ensure refund with interest, and reprimand the telecom department (DoT) officials of “inaction” on the prevailing issue. [It also] said that the firm was cheating consumers by accepting pre-orders with a deposit of Rs 7,500 ($100) for yet-to-be-launched service.
It is unclear who funds Telecom Watchdog. I would not be surprised if it is backed by those in India who have also have vested interest in SpaceX’s chief competitor, OneWeb. The Indian company, Bharti Enterprises Ltd, has invested $500 million to OneWeb, which plans to initiate service to India next year. Starlink poses a serious financial threat to that roll-out.
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A non-profit advocacy group in India, dubbed Telecom Watchdog, has demanded that the Indian government prosecute Elon Musk and Starlink because it asks for and gets $100 deposits from customers without guaranteeing a specific delivery date for its Starlink internet service.
The organisation further asked the telecom regulator to take effective steps to ensure refund with interest, and reprimand the telecom department (DoT) officials of “inaction” on the prevailing issue. [It also] said that the firm was cheating consumers by accepting pre-orders with a deposit of Rs 7,500 ($100) for yet-to-be-launched service.
It is unclear who funds Telecom Watchdog. I would not be surprised if it is backed by those in India who have also have vested interest in SpaceX’s chief competitor, OneWeb. The Indian company, Bharti Enterprises Ltd, has invested $500 million to OneWeb, which plans to initiate service to India next year. Starlink poses a serious financial threat to that roll-out.
Readers!
Please consider supporting my work here at Behind the Black. Your support allows me the freedom and ability to analyze objectively the ongoing renaissance in space, as well as the cultural changes -- for good or ill -- that are happening across America. Fourteen years ago I wrote that SLS and Orion were a bad ideas, a waste of money, would be years behind schedule, and better replaced by commercial private enterprise. Only now does it appear that Washington might finally recognize this reality.
In 2020 when the world panicked over COVID I wrote that the panic was unnecessary, that the virus was apparently simply a variation of the flu, that masks were not simply pointless but if worn incorrectly were a health threat, that the lockdowns were a disaster and did nothing to stop the spread of COVID. Only in the past year have some of our so-called experts in the health field have begun to recognize these facts.
Your help allows me to do this kind of intelligent analysis. I take no advertising or sponsors, so my reporting isn't influenced by donations by established space or drug companies. Instead, I rely entirely on donations and subscriptions from my readers, which gives me the freedom to write what I think, unencumbered by outside influences.
You can support me either by giving a one-time contribution or a regular subscription. There are four ways of doing so:
1. Zelle: This is the only internet method that charges no fees. All you have to do is use the Zelle link at your internet bank and give my name and email address (zimmerman at nasw dot org). What you donate is what I get.
2. Patreon: Go to my website there and pick one of five monthly subscription amounts, or by making a one-time donation.
3. A Paypal Donation or subscription:
4. Donate by check, payable to Robert Zimmerman and mailed to
Behind The Black
c/o Robert Zimmerman
P.O.Box 1262
Cortaro, AZ 85652
You can also support me by buying one of my books, as noted in the boxes interspersed throughout the webpage or shown in the menu above.
https://www.indiatoday.in/technology/news/story/telecom-watchdog-asks-dot-to-stop-amazon-oneweb-and-starlink-to-acquire-5g-spectrum-through-backdoor-for-free-1824963-2021-07-07
They’re targeting One Web as well, I’m betting there’s a consumer protection law in India that requires contracts to have written dates for supply of service with which Telecom Watchdog thinks these large foreign corporations have to comply. Raising the issue against such high profile companies is great publicity for Telecom Watchdog.
Musk got my hundred bucks back in February. But I am a big boy and I can read that he made no promises about deliver date. The only promise that he made was that it was fully refundable. So far, I have not asked for my money back. I even know that Starlink is far inferior and more expensive that what I have now. But I don’t care. I hate Comcast and there will be a party in my house the day I rip the cable from the side of my house and smash the round green tube in my yard that has their connections. (Well, my neighbor might be mad as we share the tube.)
Small edit in last paragraph: “plans to initiate service”
Andi: Thank you as always.
For reasons unrelated to Starlink, I asked for a refund on my deposit and received it immediately, so I suspect this row is entirely political and dishonest on the part of Telecom Watchdog. Musk’s spectacular endeavor will provide access to the Internet for essentially all people on Earth, regardless of the oppression or censorship of their governments. Starlink is one of the greatest efforts ever attempted on part of the freedom of mankind, and it will not be happily embraced by those who wish to enslave or propagandize their fellow man. I also doubt earthbound competitors to Starlink will be very thrilled when Musk gets the bandwidth up to competitive levels. So expect more whining from everywhere.
What business is this of Telecom Watchdog’s, or anyone else’s? As JhonB pointed out “But I am a big boy . . .” Yes, a contract between consenting adults. A concept seemingly alien to the woke. Go back to sleep.
I’m very pleased with my Starlink service (in South Dakota). There seems to be an orbital “thin spot” around 0915 to 0930 when there are some latency issues with VOIP, but buffered connections are (usually) fine.
It is not quite as reliable as my CenturyLink gigabit fiber service in Denver was, but bandwidth-wise I cannot tell the difference. Multiple audio and video streams work fine. VOIP works. RDP works. I’m sure there is a bandwidth difference, but Starlink meets my needs.
And, as JhonB says, I like where my money is going: Pretty much directly to SpaceX.
The router is scary: It has one light, one wire, and no access. Who knows what’s going on in there?!? The only thing connected to it on the “inside” is a Raspberry Pi firewall; everything else hangs off that so I have some visibility.