The Briefing Room
General Category => Science, Technology and Knowledge => Space => Topic started by: Elderberry on April 24, 2021, 01:52:33 am
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Wall Street Journal by Bojan Pancevski 4/19/2021
Elon Musk’s internet satellite venture has spawned an unlikely alliance of competitors, regulators and experts who say the billionaire is building a near-monopoly that is threatening space safety and the environment.
The Starlink project, owned by Mr. Musk’s Space Exploration Technologies Corp. or SpaceX, is authorized to send some 12,000 satellites into orbit to beam superfast internet to every corner of the Earth. It has sought permission for another 30,000.
Now, rival companies such as Viasat Inc., VSAT 0.25% OneWeb Global Ltd., Hughes Network Systems and Boeing Co. are challenging Starlink’s space race in front of regulators in the U.S. and Europe. Some complain that Mr. Musk’s satellites are blocking their own devices’ signals and have physically endangered their fleets.
Mr. Musk’s endeavor is still in beta testing but it has already disrupted the industry, and even spurred the European Union to develop a rival space-based internet project to be unveiled by the end of the year.
More: https://www.wsj.com/articles/elon-musks-satellite-internet-project-is-too-risky-rivals-say-11618827368 (https://www.wsj.com/articles/elon-musks-satellite-internet-project-is-too-risky-rivals-say-11618827368)
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I use Viasat now and plan to change to StarLink.
My speed should quadruple and cost cut by 1/3.
Although I am supposed to get up 25 mbs, I typically get 5~10 mbs. So maybe my speed will increase 10 fold.
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I can see how the land-based internet providers, ATT and Spectrum, etc, would see their monopolies threatened by a new internet competitor.
What I want to know is if Boeing is going to be willing to electrocute an elephant to beat back Musk's challenge?
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I can see how the land-based internet providers, ATT and Spectrum, etc, would see their monopolies threatened by a new internet competitor.
What I want to know is if Boeing is going to be willing to electrocute an elephant to beat back Musk's challenge?
Not sure that StarLink is a threat to wired and cable internet providers since StarLink is direct at a customer base that they do not or can not serve. What I find interesting is the cry of monopoly by competitors of which isn't Bezos one? When the government and regulators completely ignore Amazon, Facebook, Twitter, Apple, etc. I remember when they tore apart AT&T and my phone service went to shit and rates went up, but hey they broke up a monopoly, and remember when they went after Microsoft simply because they included their own web browser in Windows, even though no one was forced to use it? But hey Apple including Safari? A-OK!