SpaceX’s satellite broadband system, Starlink, is still in beta, but it’s currently supplying high-speed internet to more than 10,000 people in the US and abroad.
The company revealed the subscriber count in an application to the FCC on Wednesday to become a designated telecommunications carrier. The US regulator is preparing to award $886 million in funding to SpaceX to supply high-speed broadband to rural areas across the US.
In the same application, SpaceX says “hundreds of thousands” of consumers across all 50 US states have signed up on Starlink.com to learn about its availability, even though the company has spent no money on advertising.
Currently, Starlink’s public beta in North America has been limited to users based in the northern US and southern Canada. The download/uploads speeds can reach around 150Mbps/15-30Mbps with the latency at around 30 milliseconds, which is on par with ground-based internet.
Interestingly, SpaceX’s application says Starlink will offer “voice-telephony” services as part of its deal to secure funding from the FCC. However, this may involve tapping a third-party provider. The rates for Starlink’s broadband will also be “reasonably comparable” to what consumers can get in urban areas.
If you’re still waiting to try the public beta, the good news is SpaceX launched a new batch of Starlink satellites into orbit on Thursday, which should help expand the system’s coverage area and speeds. Another batch of satellites is also slated to blast off on Friday. In the long-term, the company plans on supplying download speeds at 10Gbps.
To receive an invite to Starlink’s beta public, you can go to the official website and sign up for the email newsletter to learn about service availability. The beta costs $99 a month, plus an additional $499 one-time fee for the satellite dish and router/Wi-Fi modem.