Starlink gets 90-day waiver to operate without local gateway

The internet regulator in Bangladesh has granted Starlink permission to supply bandwidth from outside the country for 90 days.

This decision comes after Starlink requested the Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) to grant a temporary waiver, as the company's 90-day deadline to launch services in Bangladesh would expire before a local gateway could be established.

"We have allowed Starlink to supply bandwidth without a local gateway for 90 days," BTRC Chairman Md Emdadul Bari said yesterday.

He added that the waiver was granted since Starlink would be unable to make its local gateway operational within the government's targeted timeline for launching services.

In March, Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus directed authorities to ensure Starlink's commercial launch within 90 days.

According to the satellite internet guidelines in Bangladesh, providers must route their internet traffic through local gateways and connect to an International Internet Gateway (IIG) for data transmission.

As such, it remains unclear whether Starlink will be permitted to launch commercial services while supplying bandwidth from outside the country's gateway infrastructure.

On April 29, the BTRC granted Starlink a licence to operate satellite internet services in the country.

On March 25, the BTRC issued the "Licensing Guidelines for Non-Geostationary Orbit (NGSO) Satellite Services Operator in Bangladesh".

Under these guidelines, Starlink Services Bangladesh applied to the BTRC for an NGSO Satellite Services Operator License, submitting the applicable fees and necessary documents.

The company's local office is registered at a building in the capital's Karwan Bazar.

After receiving the application, the telecom regulator formed a seven-member committee to evaluate it. The committee verified all submitted documents and found them to be authentic and complete, recommending Starlink for the licence.

"This is the swiftest recommendation BTRC has ever made for such a licence," an official of the commission said.

Subsequently, a two-member team from the BTRC visited Starlink's Bangladesh office and also recommended granting the licence.

Starlink officials could not be reached for comment at the time of filing this report.