“High speed internet, no matter how remote,” is a Starlink selling point for its residential data offering that will soon be made available to anyone anywhere in Fiji, with the awarding of an ISP and a spectrum licenses to the company by the government last Friday.
And if the availability map on the Starlink website is anything to go by, Fijians will be getting services from the Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellite constellation owned by tech entrepreneur Elon Musk, by as early as the first quarter of next year – just a few months away.
At a cost that has been described as “competitive”.
The Government has yet to respond to queries on the details of the spectrum license awarded to Starlink.
The Fiji Times has been informed however that the ISP license is not restricted to the rural and remote areas but covers the whole of Fiji, which will put Starlink in direct competition to local ISPs such as Vodafone Fiji and Digicel Fiji.
Comments are also being sought from the publicly listed Amalgamated Telecom Holdings, parent company of Vodafone Fiji and Telecom Fiji which controls the domestic fiber optic network, on whether it expects Starlink to be a competitive force.
There are no official details on Starlink’s ground stations in Fiji, except for one set up in collaboration with FINTEL under a temporary emergency permit granted last year to help Tonga during the Hunga-Tonga volcanic eruption.
A comment is being sought from the company on its plans for Fiji.
Meanwhile, the Fijian Competition and Consumer Commission has welcomed Starlink’s entry, saying it will “revolutionise internet connectivity in Fiji”.
