Grace Ashiru
Starlink is gearing up to launch in Ghana by August 2024 and will follow with a September 1 launch in Zimbabwe. Meanwhile, in South Africa, users are facing disconnection from SpaceX’s satellite Internet service.
SpaceX has issued a second warning, stating that customers using Starlink outside the country where their kit was originally registered for more than two months would face disconnection starting August 21, 2024.
The company emphasized that its ‘Mobile — Regional’ plans are intended for short-term travel rather than long-term usage in a different country. Starlink has advised these users to either change their account to reflect the correct country or return to the country where the kit was first registered.
Here’s the catch: Starlink hasn’t officially launched its services in South Africa yet. The only way to access it is through a roaming subscription, which technically falls into a legal grey area since Starlink lacks the necessary licenses or a local partner to offer its services lawfully within South Africa.
Initially, South Africa was set to be the first country in Southern Africa to get Starlink. However, the company has remained silent on why the launch date was pushed from 2023 to “Unknown.” The prevailing belief is that this delay is linked to uncertainties surrounding the country’s black ownership requirements.
Icasa, the telecom regulator in South Africa, had initially mandated that national network companies should have a 30% ownership by historically disadvantaged groups. However, in March 2021, they altered this requirement to stipulate that companies must be 30% black-owned. Subsequently, the implementation of this rule was put on hold indefinitely.
