1171 replies to this topic

[Victoria Watcher]

SpaceX has just won a key grant worth nearly $1bn from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to bring its low-Earth orbit Starlink satellite broadband service to people in 35 US states. 

 

Elon Musk's space transportation services company has scooped a sizable chunk of the FCC's first round of support under the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund (RDOF). The first phase is worth $9bn, but the total amount allocated to the fund to patch up rural America's patchy internet is funded to the tune of $16bn over 10 years. 

 

 

https://www.zdnet.co...o-35-us-states/

 

 

 

SpaceX has launched nearly 900 spacecraft into low-Earth orbit over the past 12 months, a trajectory that has skyrocketed Morgan Stanley Research's approximate "base" valuation of the aerospace company to $101 billion from $52 billion last year, and up to $200 billion in a best-case scenario.

 

Success, however, is far from guaranteed. 

 

"This is probably one of the most challenging, if not the most challenging project, we've undertaken. No one has been successful deploying a huge constellation for ... satellite internet," Gwynne Shotwell, president and COO of SpaceX, told TED in May 2018. She estimated it'd require "$10 billion or more" to deploy the network's first phase of roughly 4,400 satellites. Musk said in March of this year that a key focus of Starlink is "making it not go bankrupt."

 

Even as public beta test users report Starlink can offer broadband-like performance in rural America, telecommunications industry analysts tell Business Insider it may take the audacious project several years to break even, let alone profit.

 

As part of that uphill battle, they say, SpaceX needs to simultaneously reduce costs, pull subscribers from the small US satellite-internet market, dramatically expand that market, and convince investors to continue pouring billions into the company's coffers.

 

https://www.business...-profit-2020-11

Edited by Victoria Watcher, 08 December 2020 - 11:29 AM.

[Victoria Watcher]

Depending on where they live, some Canadians can now sign up for Starlink’s satellite internet service.

 

Starlink, the new high-speed internet service provided by Elon Musk’s U.S.-based SpaceX firm, recently expanded its first public testing stage to Canada in these coordinates:

 

Province Latitudes (°N)

 

Alberta 49.0 – 51.5

British Columbia 48.4 – 51.7

Manitoba 49.0 – 51.1

New Brunswick 45.3 – 47.6

Nova Scotia 45.0 – 46.0

Ontario 43.1 – 51.0

Saskatchewan

49.6 – 50.7

 

 

https://www.itworldc...anadians/441163

 

so very roughly this is the area in bc:

 

 

the red dot is revelstoke at 51 degrees.

Edited by Victoria Watcher, 22 January 2021 - 08:11 AM.

[Mike K.]

This is game changing. You can take your dish camping, for instance, and with a small generator keep it running when you need to. I also hear the upload and download speeds are crazy fast compared to traditional satellite internet speeds.

[Victoria Watcher]

so they have 1000 satellites in orbit now (they launched 60 more this week).

[sebberry]

I don't think I'd be replacing my home internet with this, but the portability is nice.

 

Where's the federal government at with their 'rural broadband'?

[Victoria Watcher]

i think what it does is open up rural living. at least part-time. if you own a summer home it's much more realistic to spend an entire month there if the whole family can have netflix.

and certainly camping or RVing.

Edited by Victoria Watcher, 22 January 2021 - 09:28 AM.

[Mike K.]

Yes, this is huge! And for business this will be incredibly empowering as crews in rural areas will now have reliable Internet, but most importantly, at a reasonable price compared to existing satellite solutions.

[lanforod]

The cost to entry is too prohibitive now. But in a couple years it could be a lot better.

[rjag]

I don't think I'd be replacing my home internet with this, but the portability is nice.

 

Where's the federal government at with their 'rural broadband'?

 

They have to re-announce it for at least another 2-3 years and then hope it wont be needed if the private sector can fill that need. 

[Mike K.]

^ ^ How so? Kids are dropping $1,500 on iphones every two years.

[Victoria Watcher]

The cost to entry is too prohibitive now. But in a couple years it could be a lot better.

 

$500?  and $129/mo.?

 

that's not prohibitive.

[lanforod]

$500?  and $129/mo.?

 

that's not prohibitive.

 

It's $650+tax entry.

$129+tax monthly.

 

And its not portable (at this time). So for 99%+ it makes no sense. Once it is permitted to be portable, it makes a lot more sense.

[sebberry]

^ ^ How so? Kids are dropping $1,500 on iphones every two years.

 

And mom and dad are paying for everything else.  

 

Just wait until they have to drop $2000 on car insurance.  They'll be making their iPhones last until they're no longer receiving iOS updates.

[Victoria Watcher]

it's not for those that have access to cable broadband.  it's for those that have second homes or nice RVs.

 

and it IS portable if you know what you are doing.  certainly in 6-12 months it will be "officially" portable.

 

they need 12,000+ satellites for the whole planet to be covered.   so they are still a ways away.

Edited by Victoria Watcher, 22 January 2021 - 10:46 AM.

[lanforod]

Right on their website it says "for use at the service address assigned only".  Yes, that will change, eventually.

 

I agree on your first point; however it's still expensive unless there is a way to suspend billing when you're not at your boonies home.

The real benefit is to those who live in the boonies with nothing or only dialup now, but that's not a lot of people (and it's 2 more devices to power. Better add more solar panels and battery packs to that startup cost if you don't have Hydro).

Edited by lanforod, 22 January 2021 - 10:46 AM.

[Victoria Watcher]

Right on their website it says "for use at the service address assigned only".  Yes, that will change, eventually.

 

that's because they would need 12,000 satellites to be actually "portable".  each satellite train can cover only a few-hundred km swath of earth.  so if your billing address is inside that the system will recognize your set-up.

 

most of canada has no high-sped internet.  63% of rural homes.

 

https://policyoption...speed-internet/

 

but VERY few people have no power.

Edited by Victoria Watcher, 22 January 2021 - 10:54 AM.

[Victoria Watcher]

starlink invite:

 

 

 

Starlink is now available in limited supply in your service area.

 

During beta, users can expect to see data speeds vary from 50Mb/s to 150Mb/s and latency from 20ms to 40ms in most locations over the next several months as we enhance the Starlink system. There will also be brief periods of no connectivity at all.

 

As we launch more satellites, install more ground stations and improve our networking software, data speed, latency and uptime will improve dramatically. For latency, we expect to achieve 16ms to 19ms by summer 2021.  

 

To check availability for your location, visit Starlink.com and re-enter your email and service address. If available, you will be immediately redirected to the Starlink order page.

 

Availability is limited so orders must be completed within 15 minutes of landing on the order page. If you are not able to order at this time, the Starlink team will continue to send updates as more capacity becomes available.

 

Thank you for your interest in Starlink and your continued support!  

[Ismo07]

 

starlink invite:

 

 

 

Starlink is now available in limited supply in your service area.

 

During beta, users can expect to see data speeds vary from 50Mb/s to 150Mb/s and latency from 20ms to 40ms in most locations over the next several months as we enhance the Starlink system. There will also be brief periods of no connectivity at all.

 

As we launch more satellites, install more ground stations and improve our networking software, data speed, latency and uptime will improve dramatically. For latency, we expect to achieve 16ms to 19ms by summer 2021.  

 

To check availability for your location, visit Starlink.com and re-enter your email and service address. If available, you will be immediately redirected to the Starlink order page.

 

Availability is limited so orders must be completed within 15 minutes of landing on the order page. If you are not able to order at this time, the Starlink team will continue to send updates as more capacity becomes available.

 

Thank you for your interest in Starlink and your continued support!  

 

 

$129/mo?

[Victoria Watcher]

yes. Plus some upfront equipment cost maybe $600

[Spy Black]

Starlink is SkyNet, and Elon Musk is Cyberdyne Systems.

 

You've been warned.

Edited by Spy Black, 09 February 2021 - 04:09 PM.