Starlink’s Dramatic Entry into the Kenyan Market
Angela Mutiso and Ochara Clive
About a year and a half ago, Starlink ventured into the Kenyan market as part of its ambitious plan to provide stable, high-speed internet to every corner of the globe. Starlink delivers high-speed internet access using a constellation of satellites in low-Earth orbit. These satellites transmit signals to an Internet Service Provider (ISP) and then to an Internet modem at your home or office. The process requires the installation of a satellite dish at a strategic point on your premises to receive these signals from space.
Once the satellite dish is set up, a Wi-Fi router transmits the internet to phones, computers, and other devices, similar to how regular home internet works. Starlink is the brainchild of Elon Musk, the world-renowned businessman and investor behind companies like SpaceX, Starlink Services LLC, Tesla, and Neuralink.
The Starlink project began in 2015. As of 2023, there were over 3,000 satellites in the Starlink constellation. In 2020, SpaceX estimated the overall cost of the decade-long endeavor to design, manufacture, and deploy the satellite constellation at a whopping $10 billion.
In Kenya, the local internet market has long been dominated by traditional internet service providers (ISPs) that use fiber optic technology such as Safaricom, Telcom, Zuku, and Fiber. Enter Starlink, a satellite internet service provider that offers enticing bargains and better speeds, even in the most remote parts of the country. The service has caused a lot of hype among Kenyans. The traditional ISPs are watching these developments closely, as is to be expected however, some of them are not very happy.
Elon Musk is a man known for his bold ideas. With SpaceX, Musk hopes to establish a self-sufficient human colony on Mars. He has big dreams for Starlink too. In June 2024, Musk, posted a survey question on his official X account. He asked his followers: “Would you buy a Tesla Smartphone? (Your information will never be collected) Free Starlink. Free 𝕏 Premium. “The response was a resounding yes; 87.5% of Elon’s followers said they would be interested in owning a Tesla smartphone.
The release date and price of the Starlink phone are yet to be confirmed, though speculations suggest it may arrive as early as 2024 with a possible flagship-level price. Alongside free high-speed internet, the rumored features include integration with Tesla vehicles and potential compatibility with brain-computer interfaces, though these details remain speculative.
The release of such a phone would have a profound impact on communication and the telecommunications industry as a whole. Imagine having a smartphone with a high-speed internet connection that you can use in every corner of the planet. The local mobile network and internet service providers have every right to be worried. If the Starlink phone is sold in Kenya, there’s bound to be a shift from prepaid mobile network usage to free online messaging platforms like WhatsApp.
While Starlink’s entry has drawn significant attention, it is not Kenya’s only satellite internet service. Other providers include Visocom, Skynet , and Viasat. Safaricom also announced last year that it was working on introducing satellite internet.
Although there are no official figures on Starlink’s user base in Kenya, data from the Communication Authority of Kenya indicates that the number of satellite internet users rose from 1,354 in the three months leading up to September 2023 to 2,933 by the end of that year. Based on the buzz Starlink have generated, these numbers are likely to have increased even further.
To fully understand Musk’s vision for Starlink, and how it might affect day-to-day internet use, we need to look at its advantages, disadvantages, as well as the effect it has had on communities around the world.
What Are Some of the Advantages Starlink Has to Offer its Users?
Satellite internet offers significant advantages, especially for people whose primary residence or workplace is in a rural area where cable or fiber broadband options are either limited or unavailable. With its global reach, Starlink also holds enormous potential as a tool for learning, and making money, even in areas where this wasn’t possible before.
Starlink can deliver speeds exceeding 150 megabytes per second (MBPS) to any location on Earth, provided the satellite dish has an unobstructed view of the sky. This is in contrast to local providers, which started rolling out 5G services in 2022, promising speeds of up to 100 MBPS. However, 5G coverage remains limited, and 5G routers are still not widely accessible, two years later. High speed internet not only boosts workplace efficiency, it also boosts online security and facilitates swifter cloud access.
Another advantage is Starlink’s affordability. When it first launched in Kenya in July 2023, it offered competitively priced internet packages with superior speeds. However, the high cost of the hardware initially presented a challenge for many potential users. The Starlink kit was initially priced at around 74,000 Kenyan shillings. It later became more affordable after being made available in local retail chains like Naivas and online marketplaces like Jumia.
Earlier this year, Starlink further reduced the hardware price to 39,500 shillings and later introduced an even more attractive offer, selling the kit for 29,000 shillings. The company also introduced a rental option: customers pay a one-time activation fee of 2,700 shillings, a monthly hardware rental fee of 1,950 shillings, and a service plan starting at 1,300 shillings for 50 GB of data per month.
When compared to other providers, Starlink’s more aggressive pricing strategies have heightened competition in the market, leaving competitors on edge.
Starlink Under Scrutiny: Challenges and Controversies
At the Black Hat Security Conference in Las Vegas, Belgian cybersecurity researcher Lennert Wouters exposed hardware vulnerabilities in Starlink’s satellites, showing they could be hacked using a $25 homemade modchip. He successfully gained access to Starlink’s system and ran custom code on its devices, bypassing SpaceX’s security using a voltage fault injection attack on a Starlink User Terminal (UT).
Wouters, who previously hacked a Tesla, highlighted the risks posed by the widespread availability of Starlink UTs, making them susceptible to hackers. Wouters has made his hacking tool available on GitHub, detailing how to perform the attack.
In response, SpaceX praised his work, offering up to $25,000 through their bug bounty program for researchers who can find bugs in their system. SpaceX even published a paper encouraging non-disruptive hacking to improve security. Elon Musk and SpaceX’s information security manager celebrated Wouters’ achievement, promoting their openness to collaboration with security researchers.
This open book approach to security is a step in the right direction. By challenging people to hack his product, and expose its vulnerabilities, Elon is building a more robust and impenetrable system that will hopefully mean better security for the end user.
Locally, Safaricom is lobbying the Communications Authority (CA) to prevent foreign satellite internet providers, including Elon Musk’s Starlink, from operating independently in Kenya. In a memo dated July 15, Safaricom proposed that satellite service providers be required to partner with local licensees to operate in the country.
The telecom giant expressed concern that without a physical presence in Kenya, these providers could bypass stringent regulations, making enforcement difficult. Safaricom argued that satellite ISPs should only be allowed to operate under the license rights of local companies.
Through dialogue, perhaps the government can sit down with executives from Starlink and local internet service providers to set up a framework for regulation that will be suitable for everyone across the board.
Competition is essential in any market, as it drives companies to improve their services and reduce prices, ultimately benefiting consumers. Starlink’s entry into the Kenyan market has already challenged traditional ISPs, prompting them to rethink their strategies. While Safaricom raises valid concerns about regulation, we need to remember that competition in any sector also pushes for innovation, affordability, and better services.
If Starlink can address security vulnerabilities and protect users’ data, it has the potential to be a transformative force for good. Its satellite technology can bring high-speed internet to underserved areas, providing a lifeline to NGO workers in rural regions, Kenya Wildlife Service rangers monitoring endangered species in remote national parks, and others who require reliable communication in far-flung locations.
As long as security is strengthened and fair regulations are put in place, Starlink, and other satellite internet providers can empower individuals and communities with valuable opportunities for learning, economic growth, and global connectivity. By bridging the digital divide, these technologies will ultimately improve Kenya’s development by creating a more dynamic and inclusive digital future.
Angela Mutiso, the Editorial Consultant of the Accountant Journal, Ochara Clive is a Business Writer and Entrepreneur.
