It now costs more to get Internet access with Starlink.
Starlink is revising its price list upwards, including in France. This is what the pre-order page of the official site reveals, with new amounts for the month of March 2022. This increase is significant, since the difference with the old prices reaches almost 150 euros. The formula actually loses its attractiveness compared to other Internet access offers.
In detail, the price increase affects both the cost of acquiring the equipment and the delivery and handling costs. The connection kit, which was once sold at 499 euros, now goes to 634 euros. As for shipping and service costs, they also evolve negatively for customers, since they go from 59 to 71 euros.
The expenditure necessary to acquire a Starlink kit reaches a total of 705 euros, against 558 euros previously, a difference of 147 euros.
The monthly cost of the subscription does not change: it is still announced at 99 euros. However, that might not last. The American press, which also echoes these tariff changes, notes that the bill has risen to 110 dollars per month, instead of 99 dollars per month. These changes are put on the back of inflation, explains PC Mag.
Blame it on inflation, says Starlink
” The sole purpose of these adjustments is to keep pace with rising inflation “, has also commented SpaceX, which operates the Starlink service, during a message addressed to customers, which Spacenews reproduces. Across the Atlantic, inflation reached 7.5% in one year. In France, it is more contained, with an increase of 3.6% in one year.
Starlink is the name given to a network of satellites owned by SpaceX. Born in the early 2000s, this company founded by Elon Musk specializes in astronautics. With Starlink, Starlink becomes an Internet service provider, with the particularity of offering an Internet connection that passes through space, thanks to satellite dishes to be placed on the roofs.
The idea with Starlink is to be able to provide access to the Internet worldwide, including where the network does not go, or is difficult (and it can also be used in special circumstances, for example after a natural disaster or in the event of of conflict — Ukraine being a textbook case). That said, Starlink does not forget Western countries, which constitute a potential pool of customers.
Today, Starlink is present everywhere in mainland France. If on certain metrics, Starlink does not have to be ashamed of terrestrial networks, it is not yet at the level in others. However, the cost to Starlink remains a very high step to pass. Other formulas, even if they may not be as promising, are in any case much less expensive.
