Starlink will gradually be deployed on the African continent. At least that’s what Elon Musk confirmed in a tweet posted last Tuesday. The businessman indicated that his satellite internet service, launched through SpaceX, his space exploration company, would be used anywhere in the world where it is legally authorized to do so.
He then specified that Africa was one of the continents soon to be concerned… and indeed: three days later, the person concerned returned to the charge (always on twitter) to clarify that Nigeria and Mozambique had both given their approval for the launch of Starlink on their respective territories. Other African countries, including South Africa, are expected to follow suit in 2022.
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As specified TechCrunch, the agreement reached with the Nigerian authorities follows negotiations that began in 2021. We finally learn that in May, SpaceX had finally sent representatives to the NCC (Nigerian Communications Commission) to discuss obtaining a license for Starlink in the country. Successful negotiations if we are to believe the local press which confirmed the statements of Elon Musk. We learn in this case that the license granted to Starlink by the NCC covers a period of 10 years and that it falls into the category of Internet service providers (ISP).
Yes, first countries in Africa to be announced coming soon.
Starlink will serve everywhere on Earth that we’re legally allowed to serve.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) May 23, 2022
Starlink, which currently operates in around 30 countries (including France), should enable better competition on the Nigerian internet access market. Currently MTN and Airtel are among the main local access providers, but their competition has not resulted in a convincing improvement of the internet connection on site. The thing could change with the arrival of Starlink… even if the service of Elon Musk will suffer from a big handicap: its price… probably too high for the average user in Nigeria or Mozambique. As a reminder, the complete kit (including a motorized dish, a mounting tripod and a Wi-Fi router) is displayed in France at 499 euros, while the monthly subscription goes up to 99 euros per month.