The SpaceX satellite internet experiment, Starlink, has only been in operation for a couple of months, but it has garnered users quickly. In a new FCC filing, SpaceX explains that the user count in the United States and elsewhere totals more than 10,000 right now.
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Considering that the service is still in beta and Elon Musk’s company is still to launch thousands of Starlink satellites, it is an impressive number of users.
SpaceX also reports on the network’s performance in the filing, saying that most Starlink customers can expect internet download speeds of at least 100Mbps with fewer than 31 milliseconds of latency. The download speed is an important milestone in the USA, as most states’ average internet speeds are lower than 100Mbps.
The performance needs to be taken with a pinch of salt, however, until the service is more widely available. Test speeds tend to be high due to a low user count, but the results are promising given the intention is to service rural areas that are unable to receive fixed line internet due to a lack of infrastructure. These rural areas will be served in the USA first, but SpaceX plans to roll this out in massive numbers to areas that have absolutely no options for internet like in South-East Asia and Africa.
SpaceX hopes to get Starlink approved as an “Eligible Telecommunications Carrier” from the FCC, the regulatory body in the US, with this filing being the first step. This will allow rollout to most areas in the country, as it is being tested in only select areas in the US and Canada at the moment.
It costs $99 per month on top of a $499 fee for the equipment required to get Starlink internet running in your home. This pricing would be massively prohibitive in third-world markets, so it remains to be seen how SpaceX plans to roll it out outside of North America.
