SpaceX starts rolling out Starlink internet, hoping it’ll fund Mars flights
LA TimesSpaceX, having established a formidable reputation in rocket launches, is starting to roll out what it hopes will be an even more muscular arm of its business: broadband internet service. The Elon Musk-led company has released pricing for a public beta test of its Starlink broadband internet service, which is beamed to users via small satellites. Under the test, called the Better than Nothing Beta program, initial service for the U.S. and Canada is aimed to start this year, with “near global coverage of the populated world” set to occur in 2021, according to the official description of an app developed by SpaceX that’s intended to help users set up and monitor their Starlink service. These partnerships show that Starlink’s customer base won’t consist only of consumers looking for home internet service, said Chad Anderson, managing partner at early-stage venture capital fund Space Capital, which is a SpaceX investor through its Space Angels fund. “I am a big believer in the future of the rural communities having internet that’s low cost and accessible all throughout the country.” For a U.S. market, SpaceX’s price point is reasonable, but for the underserved global market, it’s expensive, said Carissa Christensen, chief executive of market research firm Bryce Space & Technology.