Ukrainians pay from their wallets for communication services of more than 100 thousand terminals, so it is not profitable for Elon Musk to block satellite Internet in the country.
Ukraine does not yet have an alternative to SpaceX’s Starlink satellite internet, which is actively used by the Armed Forces soldiers at the front. This view was expressed by the chairman of the parliament’s cybersecurity subcommittee, Alexander Fedienko, in a post on his Facebook page.
How many Starlink terminals are there in Ukraine?
Alexander Fedienko studied information obtained from open sources and came to the conclusion that there are currently about 140-150 thousand Starlink satellite Internet terminals in Ukraine. This figure was also confirmed by experts at the supplier company’s support center. As assistance, international partners provided Ukraine with about 45 thousand Starlink terminals with prepaid communications. But the rest of the terminals, the number of which exceeds 100 thousand, were purchased by volunteers and philanthropists and, accordingly, they also cover the subscription fee.
How do terminals reach Ukraine?
Ukrainian law firms do not have the right to purchase Starlink terminals. That is why they are imported into the country according to a “gray” scheme: first the equipment comes to Poland, then it is transferred to Ukraine. But this also has risks.
“Recently, information has appeared that the SpaceX company will allegedly block all types of mobility of existing terminals from October 1. To stay mobile, you need to switch to a different tariff package,” wrote Alexander Fedienko.
Please note that there is no information regarding changing terms of service yet on SpaceX’s official website. If the information turns out to be true, Ukrainians may receive not only a significant increase in the subscription fee for using satellite Internet, but also entire regions where there will be no coverage.
How much are Ukrainians paying to use Starlink now?
Ordinary Ukrainians, in the form of patrons and volunteers, spend about $10 million a month to keep satellite Internet running.
“This figure consists of the cost of the package and the cost of conducting a foreign exchange transaction (we pay from hryvnia to dollar), and these are also overhead costs,” said the chairman of the parliament’s cybersecurity subcommittee.
According to Alexander Fedienko, Elon Musk’s company now receives more money for satellite Internet than all European countries that have purchased Starlink terminals from Ukraine alone (there are about 80 thousand of them in Europe).
“I think Ukraine, as a citizen, pays more to SpaceX than all of Europe combined. We can say that we are the company’s largest customer. Therefore, it sometimes seems strange to me that they try to restrict us from using Starlink terminals,” the expert expressed his opinion.
Is there an alternative to SpaceX services?
Fedienko states that there is now almost no alternative to satellite internet in our country. If we talk about systems in geostationary orbit, they will no longer be able to satisfy the platforms used in modern realities.
Musk’s company may be replaced by its rival OneWeb in the satellite Internet market. However, the network capacity of this provider is very limited.
“Alternatively, it could cover a certain percentage of the need, but this is really an extremely small percentage,” the expert emphasized.
Let’s remember that a few days ago, the Ministry of Digital Development acquitted Elon Musk after the Starlink scandal. Deputy Prime Minister Mikhail Fedorov recalled that Elon Musk once donated to Ukraine a large amount of communication systems vital for the Ukrainian Armed Forces.
Let us recall that on September 7, information emerged that Elon Musk’s engineers prevented the attack carried out by the Ukrainian Armed Forces with marine drones near the Crimean coast in 2022. And the billionaire himself gave such a secret order. According to journalists, he was impressed after his meeting with the Russian leadership and was extremely afraid that Russia would respond with a nuclear strike after the attacks on Crimea.
Source: Focus
Ashley Fitzgerald is an accomplished journalist in the field of technology. She currently works as a writer at 24 news breaker. With a deep understanding of the latest technology developments, Ashley’s writing provides readers with insightful analysis and unique perspectives on the industry.