Taiwan Revises Telecommunications Law, Opens Market to Starlink: "Prepared for Conflict with China"

Exemption of Foreign Ownership Restrictions

"Move to Secure Emergency Communications Network in Case of Crisis"

Reuters Yonhap News

Taiwanese authorities have amended the Telecommunications Act, which previously restricted foreign ownership in satellite communication network operators. With the removal of this major barrier that had blocked Starlink's entry into Taiwan, SpaceX is now expected to make tangible progress in entering the Taiwanese market. Some analysts suggest that the Taiwanese authorities revised the law as part of efforts to establish an emergency communications network in preparation for a possible crisis with China.

According to the South China Morning Post (SCMP) on July 22, Taiwan's Legislative Yuan (parliament) passed an amendment to the Telecommunications Management Act the previous day. The main point of the amendment is that it allows exemptions from various regulations, including restrictions on foreign ownership in satellite communication network operators. As a result of the revision, there is increasing consensus that Starlink may now enter the Taiwanese market.

Until now, Starlink was unable to enter the Taiwanese market due to the existing telecommunications law. For security reasons, Taiwan's previous Telecommunications Management Act limited foreign ownership in operators building satellite communication or other public telecommunication networks to 49%, and required the chairman of the board to hold Taiwanese nationality.

SpaceX, which has consistently insisted on holding 100% ownership of its local business, requested a removal of ownership restrictions in talks with Taiwanese authorities in 2021, but eventually abandoned its entry plans. Now, with the regulatory barrier removed through this amendment, observers believe SpaceX's entry is finally feasible.

This revision to Taiwan's telecommunications law appears to be a strategy to secure an emergency communications network in the event of a military conflict or other crisis with China. Taiwan has yet to establish its own low-earth orbit (LEO) satellite communications network, and most of its communications rely on undersea cables connected primarily to Japan.

Chieh Cheng, a researcher at Taiwan's military think tank, the Association of Strategic Foresight, told SCMP, "Taiwan already has limited LEO satellite service through cooperation with Britain's OneWeb, but that is restricted to supporting military and some government agency communications in wartime situations," adding, "The introduction of Starlink will substantially boost Taiwan’s low-earth orbit satellite communication capacity in a short time."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.