Satellite internet company Starlink has received approval from the US regulator FCC to offer its services to users in ships, airplanes and other vehicles. This is reported by the supervisor.
Starlink is part of the space company SpaceX of American multi-billionaire Elon Musk and puts satellites in orbit around the earth to provide internet in remote areas. Thousands of Starlink satellites are already floating in space.
Starlink is said to have around 500,000 subscribers worldwide. They receive signals from space via small dishes that can be mounted on their homes or businesses. The service is also available in Belgium and costs 99 euros per month here.
According to SpaceX, the use of the internet service by trucks, boats and airplanes would work similarly but would require additional sensors to be attached. The FCC said it had received requests from other parties to refuse or delay the new SpaceX service. These came from, among others, Viasat, Dish Network and RS Access.
Viasat objected to Starlink because the large amount of satellites orbiting the Earth increases the risk of collisions in space. Dish and RS Access are engaged in a dispute with SpaceX over the use of the frequencies.
