Hughes Communications India, subsidiary of EchoStar of Germantown, Maryland, and New Delhi-based Airtel announced an agreement to combine their VSAT operations in India. Hughes, the number one operator in the Indian VSAT market, will have majority stake in the combined entity while Airtel, the second largest VSAT operator, will have a significant shareholding. Hughes has 103,168 VSAT installations in India; Bharti Airtel, the number one telecom operator based on revenue, has 79,604 VSAT installations across India.
The combined entity will continue to serve existing Hughes and Airtel customers and both will benefit from enhanced scale, improved operational efficiencies, and wider market reach.
The total number of VSAT subscribers in India increased by 5,512 at a growth rate of 1.96 percent to 287,424 in Dec 2018 from 281,912 in Sept 2018, according to the latest statistics available from the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India.
Last updated: December 26th, 2025
