SpaceX unveiled in a rather spectacular email to customers its global roaming service for Starlink internet. The service costs $200 per month and $599 for the Starlink kit, the email shows. SpaceX said in the email there could be brief periods of poor or no internet connection just as much. Elon Musk’s SpaceX has invited some customers to try out its new global roaming Starlink service, which costs around $800..
According to screenshots of the email posted on social-media sites by a few of the customers and workers alike, the service allows Starlink to “connect from almost anywhere on land in the world.” Global roaming customers will be charged $200 a month for the service and pay a one-time fee of $599 for the Starlink kit , which comprises a dish to connect to the satellites, a tripod, and a WiFi router, SpaceX wrote in the email. Customers will only be allowed to pay in US dollars and can return for a full refund of the kit within 30 days, it meticulously added.
SpaceX said in the email the service provided a global internet connection with the help of Starlink’s space lasers , which allow the satellites to send data directly to each other in orbit. The company warned users to expect high speeds and low latency, as well as short periods of poor or no connection. SpaceX added this was projected to “improve dramatically over time,” per the screenshots. Users based outside of the US will be responsible for paying the right taxes and providing the correct documentation, SpaceX wrote in the email.
“Global Roaming services are contingent on regulatory approvals,” SpaceX said in the email, linking to its map, which shows where Starlink is authorized. The map shows SpaceX is still waiting for Starlink approval from India, Pakistan, and Thailand, and is expected to activate Starlink in countries such as Ecuador, Costa Rica, and South Korea soon.
PC Mag reported that SpaceX also sent the email to the waitlist customers in countries where the satellite internet service isn’t available yet, including Greenland. The inherent rollout of the $200 roaming service comes after SpaceX said it had struggled to fund Starlink, especially during the Ukraine war.
“Starlink is still losing money!” Musk tweeted in October in response to a Twitter thread that referenced CNN’s report about SpaceX asking the Pentagon to foot the bill for the service in Ukraine. He tweeted SpaceX was burning around $20 million per month to operate Starlink in Ukraine. According to Musk, it’s “insanely difficult” for a low-Earth orbit communications constellation to avoid bankruptcy.
