It seems that Elon Musk’s Starlink satellite constellation is not just for providing super-fast Internet services. Based on recent filings with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), Starlink also plans to introduce a range of related products in its portfolio, from a dedicated telephone service, emergency backup for voice calls and more affordable Internet access for customers with a low income through the US government’s Lifeline program.
Details of Starlink’s expanded services were mentioned in SpaceX’s petition to the FCC for designation as an Eligible Telecommunications Carrier (ETC). According to the Elon Musk-led company, an ETC designation is required in some US states where the satellite Internet program has won government funding to provide Internet access to disadvantaged areas. It is also required to receive compensation from the FCC’s Lifeline Program, which offers discounts on telecom services for low-income customers.
The beta version of Starlink currently only offers Internet access, but in its filing, SpaceX noted that “Starlink Services will provide voice telephony services, including: (a) voice-activated access to the public switched telephone network (‘PSTN’) or its functional equivalent; (b) minutes of usage for local service provided to end users at no additional cost; (c) access to emergency services; and (d) toll restriction services to eligible low-income consumers in accordance with 47 CFR §§ 54,500 et seq. Starlink Services offers self-contained voice services at rates reasonably comparable to urban rates. ”
SpaceX further stated that in its base plan, “Starlink Services would provide telephone services connecting consumers to the MSP platform using the network capacity available to consumers through their customer site equipment.” Interestingly, the Elon Musk-led company added that Starlink customers would have the option of using an external, conventional phone for its service. This could prove to be a major selling point for the service, especially given the robust options of today’s mobile market.
Like other VoIP providers, SpaceX’s FCC filings have also stated that Starlink will sell a 24-hour battery backup to customers. With such a product, customers would have access to Starlink’s services even in the event of a power outage or other emergency. These redundancies would not only be applied at the user level as backups would also be implemented at the network level, Ars Technica
At the user level, Starlink Services offers a 24-hour battery backup option for user equipment that provides the ability to make calls in the event of a power outage. At the system level, Starlink Services builds redundancy into the network. This way, each user has several satellites in sight with which he can communicate. In addition, each satellite has multiple gateway sites in sight with which it can communicate. The Starlink traffic routing system ensures that each user is served with bandwidth before users requiring more bandwidth are allocated additional throughput, making the Starlink network robust in the event of emergencies requiring high throughput, ”said SpaceX.
Starlink’s battery backup technology would likely be cost-effective and market-leading as Tesla, an electric car and energy company also led by Elon Musk, develops its own custom battery cells. If SpaceX eventually starts using Tesla’s batteries, such as the company’s custom-built 4680 cells without tabs, Starlink’s 24-hour backup batteries could very well become one of, if not the best in the industry.
In addition to a dedicated phone service and a 24-hour battery backup, SpaceX also discussed a program that would bring Starlink’s services to low-income households. SpaceX’s FCC filings do not provide much detail on this program for now. Since the Lifeline program currently offers a monthly subsidy of $ 9.25 to low-income households to get broadband access, or a monthly subsidy of $ 5.25 per household for telephone services, and the fact that the beta version Starlink currently costs $ 99 per month, it seems to be a fair chance that SpaceX would offer a cheaper version of its satellite internet service in the future.
Read SpaceX’s FCC petition for an ETC designation below.
Starlink Services LLC ETC Designation Application.pdf by Simon Alvarez on Scribd
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