Elon Musk on Sunday renewed his attack on Mukesh Ambani over Starlink’s entry into India, accusing the billionaire’s supporters of indulging in “absurd hypocrisy and hyperbole” in arguing simultaneously that his satellite internet service cannot compete with “amazing low prices offered by Ambani’s de facto monopoly in India”, even as they claimed – in the same breath – that it poses a strong competitive threat.
In a post on X, Musk said competition from Starlink would benefit ordinary Indians by expanding consumer choice, and that while it could lower Ambani’s profits “he is not going out of business”. Musk also said that if, indeed, Starlink’s services were too expensive in India, consumers would not buy them, forcing the company to make its pricing affordable.
The post comes amid Musk’s scathing criticism of Ambani over the delay in the launch of Starlink satellite broadband services in India. Musk, in that post, had asked if Ambani would consider allowing his satellite internet service to compete in the country. “Let me set the record straight. For us, the Department of Telecommunications, we are technology agnostic… Our job is to be able to provide the bouquet of services to every single customer. I don’t think they themselves know whether they’re going left or right”.
Reliance has not publicly responded to Musk’s allegations, while the government has maintained that the country’s authorisation framework for telecom and satellite services is “fair and non-discriminatory” and that any suggestion that it was being applied selectively was “baseless and misconceived”. Earlier, Musk had put up a post on X sarcastically addressing industrialist Mukesh Ambani as “Prime Minister Ambani” and had accused him of seeking to protect a monopoly. It is for the customer to choose in a free market which service he or she prefers, and within that service bouquet, which company’s service he or she prefers,” the Union minister said at a briefing at the India Mobile Congress here. Hitting out at the Congress in the backdrop of Rahul Gandhi and Musk’s exchange on X, the minister had also said, “As far as the Congress is concerned…
“On the one hand, they say Starlink couldn’t possibly compete with the amazing low prices offered by Ambani’s de facto monopoly in India and then, in the same breath, they essentially claim that Starlink would be too strong of a competitor! “Ambani’s profits will be lower, but he is not going out of business.
The “ridiculous arguments” by Ambani’s internet supporters “make no sense”, he said. This is absurd hypocrisy and hyperbole,” the US tech trillionaire said. And, obviously, if Starlink is too expensive in India, no one will buy it, so SpaceX will need to make pricing affordable,” Musk further said.
