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SpaceX Pitches “Global Roaming” Internet To Starlink Waitlist
The company is offering the $200 per month plan to potential users in countries where Starlink’s service isn’t yet available.
Although Starlink’s constellation of small satellites is growing fast, regulatory approval is patchy in several large markets, including the Middle East and North Africa region. Reports are now emerging that SpaceX is readying a global roaming service to remedy the issue.
The company recently emailed people on the Starlink waitlist inviting them to try a new $200 per month package offering internet access “from almost anywhere on land in the world”.
NEWS: Starlink is testing a new "Global Roaming Service" for $200/mo, plus the standard $599 for Hardware. Will they offer this as an add-on for $65/mo like portability? @RealTeslaNorth @MarcusTuck3 https://t.co/c2vQhtOUL8 pic.twitter.com/kiLMsMkhDY
— Nathan Owens (@VirtuallyNathan) February 17, 2023
Potential customers will need a Starlink terminal to access the service, which may incur an import fee on top of the device’s $599 price, leading many to question the advantage over the existing $25 Portability Package offered to residential users.
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The answer seems to be found in SpaceX’s terms of service, which requires those who spend “an extended period of time” away from home to change their permanent address, with the $25 Portability Package intended as a strictly temporary plan for vacations and business trips.