SpaceX's Starlink Expects It Can Provide Global Coverage Around September

Starlink currently offers beta services in 11 countries.

By Reuters | Updated: 22 June 2021 16:05 IST

SpaceX's Starlink Expects It Can Provide Global Coverage Around September

SpaceX has successfully deployed approximately 1,800 satellites, to be active by September 2021

Highlights

Starlink needs approval from telecom services in every country
SpaceX plans to deploy 12,000 satellites in total
Starlink has received more than 500,000 preorders

Starlink, the satellite Internet unit of Elon Musk's SpaceX, expects to be able to provide continuous global coverage by around September but will then need to seek regulatory approvals, its president Gwynne Shotwel said on Tuesday.

"We've successfully deployed 1,800 or so satellites and once all those satellites reach their operational orbit, we will have continuous global coverage, so that should be like September timeframe," she told a Macquarie Group technology conference via webcast.

"But then we have regulatory work to go into every country and get approved to provide telecoms services." Starlink, which has said it plans to deploy 12,000 satellites in total at a cost of roughly $10 billion (roughly Rs. 74,343.83 crores), currently offers beta services in 11 countries, Shotwel said.

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In May, Musk said the low-Earth orbiting satellite network had received more than 500,000 preorders for its Internet service and anticipates no technical problems meeting demand.

The US Federal Communications Commission this year approved SpaceX's plan to deploy some Starlink satellites at a lower earth orbit than planned to provide high-speed broadband Internet services to people who currently lack access.

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Starlink is one of a growing number of makers of small satellites that also includes Amazon.com's Kuiper, Britain's OneWeb, venture capital-backed Planet, and Raytheon Technologies' Blue Canyon Technologies.

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