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Starlink is going to be a low earth orbit array of 12000 satellites that will provide Internet worldwide. Since it’s low earth orbit latency is supposed to be around 20ms. It uses lasers to transmit data between satellites, and the light travels 50% faster in the vacuum of space than it does through a glass fiber optic cable, so it’ll be very quick. This could be the service that finally provides good Internet to rural areas, and even 3rd world countries. The financial industry is very interested in it because it's very low latency will allow them to trade quicker than over standard fiber. Service will start in the US and Canada first, hopefully in the next year or so. Musk plans to take the profits from starlink and use it to colonize Mars.
Elon Musk’s SpaceX plans to spin out and pursue a public offering of its its budding space-internet business Starlink, giving investors a chance to buy into one of the most promising operations within the closely held company.
Space Exploration Technologies Corp. has already launched more than 240 satellites to build out Starlink, which will start delivering internet services to customers from space this summer, President Gwynne Shotwell said Thursday at a private investor event hosted by JPMorgan Chase & Co. in Miami.
“Right now, we are a private company, but Starlink is the right kind of business that we can go ahead and take public,” said Shotwell, SpaceX’s chief operating officer. “That particular piece is an element of the business that we are likely to spin out and go public.”
Investors have to this point had limited ways to own a piece of SpaceX, which has become one of the most richly valued venture-backed companies in the U.S. by dominating the commercial rocket industry. It flies satellites into orbit for customers including the U.S. military, carries cargo to the International Space Station and aims to start flying NASA astronauts and high-paying tourists soon.
But the rocket-launch business remains competitive and tough. Starlink and its ability to provide high-speed internet across the globe has helped private investors in SpaceX justify a roughly $33 billion valuation. Musk has long maintained that the parent is unlikely to go public until it is regularly ferrying people to Mars.
Cheaper, Faster
SpaceX is one of a handful of players that wants to build out a space internet system that can serve people who struggle to access the web today via fiber optic and cellular connections. Starlink would beam down relatively high-speed data from its network of satellites orbiting the Earth.
Right now, SpaceX can only cover higher latitudes, but by the end of the year, it expects to have global coverage, Shotwell said at the conference. Such a service would, in effect, turn SpaceX into a telecommunications company that also has a rocket business.
“This is going to turn SpaceX into a company that is providing service to consumers, which we are excited about,” Shotwell said. The company has been launching roughly 60 satellites at a time into orbit, and with another four launches expects to have global coverage. Shotwell said that service will be “less than what you are paying now for about five to 10 times the speed you are getting.”
Welcome Listing
An IPO likely would be welcomed by some SpaceX employees and investors. Musk has been reluctant to force SpaceX to endure the scrutiny that comes with being a public company and to reveal the details of SpaceX’s financials. This has left employees sitting on valuable stock, which they’re typically only able to sell during a limited number of private transactions. An IPO for Starlink might also allow its longtime backers to register gains on their high-risk investment.
There have been attempts to build similar space internet services in the past, and no company has figured out how to turn such a system into a huge, global business. Starlink dwarfs all these previous attempts in terms of the size and scope of its ambition.
Over the coming years, SpaceX intends to place thousands of satellites into orbit and will increase the bandwidth of its service with each launch. Exactly how many people will be willing to pay for this service remains an open question.
Last edited by #1 STUNNA; Feb 6, 2020 at 01:02 PM.
Highly likely I'll invest in this, especially after it's proven itself after a few years.
I have some tech questions I'm curious about, seems like it'll work best in rural areas vs densely packed areas which is the exact opposite of all other ISPs but I'm cool with that since it's addressable market is the entire fucking planet, plenty of potential customers.
This going to be a political nightmare. Russia has already threatened jailtime for anyone that uses it and I bet China isn't happy about it either. Tesla needs China, I bet Starlink bends the knee and limits access to nations that block it.
I had clients unable to work remotely when on a cruise because the latency of traditional satellite Internet was too high, often in the thousands of ms, it fucks up most Internet services.
They recently started officially supporting satellite internet for RVs. Meaning the satellite doesn't have to be fixed to a geographic location and you can put one on an RV and drive around the country. It costs $20/mo more but that's what the cruise ships are probably using. I wonder if they need to make special accomodations for airplanes? Starlink is set to dominate in airplane wifi too
Dish Network claims SpaceX violates FCC rules by tacitly encouraging users to use Starlink dishes on moving vehicles when it doesn't have clearance to do so.
Immediate access to high-speed, low-latency internet on an as-needed basis at any destination where Starlink provides active coverage. The service can be paused or un-paused at anytime. At this time, there is no waitlist - all orders will be shipped shortly after the order is placed. However, supply is subject to network and equipment availability.
We do not support Starlink use in motion at this time.
To read more on the limitations on Starlink for RVs, click here.
SpaceX says DISH takeover of 12 GHz band could render Starlink useless
SpaceX Subsidiary, Starlink and its rapidly expanding orbital satellite network might be impaired by the DISH Network Corporation’s use of 12GHz for ground-based broadband use.
SpaceX CEO Elon Musk, has escalated his response to DISH Network’s efforts to secure licensing for the 12 GHz band.
Musk initiated actions with the Federal Communications Commission, challenging the use of the 12 GHz band by DISH Network Corporation, stating that such use would render Starlink “unusable.”
Musk has asked Starlink subscribers and supporters to petition the FCC to block the DISH Network effort to secure licensing for the 12 GHz band. Over 3,000 Starlink supporters have joined the effort thus far.
“If DISH’s lobbying efforts succeed, our study shows that Starlink customers will experience harmful interference more than 77% of the time and total outage of service 74% of the time, rendering Starlink unusable for most Americans,” SpaceX stated.
Starlink also posted a statement about the potential 12 GHz band interference on its website:
“Despite technical studies dating back as far as 2016 that refute the basis of their claims, DISH has attempted to mislead the FCC with faulty analysis in hopes of obscuring the truth. The 12 GHz band has become one of the most important and intensively used spectrum bands for Americans who depend on satellite services, including Starlink users who rely on 12 GHz to download content. However, DISH Network has been attempting to claim new rights to the 12 GHz band, implying that these new rights would have no impact on existing users.”
SpaceX wrote a letter to the FCC containing additional details regarding the potential 12 GHz band interference.
Highly likely I'll invest in this, especially after it's proven itself after a few years.
