The American company Starlink, which provides high-speed satellite internet services, has announced that it will disable its service in Zimbabwe at the request of authorities. Although Starlink is not licensed to operate in Zimbabwe, locals have been acquiring kits from neighboring countries.
The Postal and Telecommunications Regulatory Authority of Zimbabwe (POTRAZ) directed Starlink to disable the service for users in Zimbabwe who are accessing it from unauthorized territories. Starlink, a product of Elon Musk's SpaceX, has expressed its intention to work with POTRAZ to obtain the necessary regulatory approvals to offer its services in Zimbabwe.
POTRAZ has stated that it has not received an application from Starlink to provide internet services in Zimbabwe. However, Starlink's website indicates that the service is expected to launch in Zimbabwe between July and September 2024.
Some government officials in Zimbabwe have raised security concerns and perceive Starlink as a potential threat to the government's control over telecommunications services in the country.
SpaceX began launching Starlink satellites in 2019, and as of early March 2024, the constellation consisted of over 6,000 small satellites in low Earth orbit. Starlink users typically experience download speeds ranging from 25 to 220 Mbps, with many users experiencing speeds over 100 Mbps.
While many Zimbabweans see Starlink as an opportunity to connect remote areas of the country to internet services, the service is relatively expensive. The cost of a Starlink kit, which includes a dish, dish mount, and Wi-Fi router base unit, ranges from US$450 to US$500.
In countries like Zambia, where Starlink is licensed, customers pay a monthly subscription fee of US$36 for unlimited low-latency internet.
