SpaceX’s satellite internet service Starlink is now serving about 140,000 users across 20 countries, up from 100,000 in August.
The company supplied the new user count in a presentation to the FCC this week. SpaceX also notes that over 750,000 users across the globe have placed “orders/deposits” for the satellite broadband system.
However, the company warned the FCC that the ongoing chip shortage is slowing down manufacturing of the Starlink dish, which consumers need to connect to the satellite broadband network. (In some good news, though, the company on Thursday unveiled a second-generation Starlink dish, which should be easier for the company to manufacture.)
SpaceX made the presentation as the company is trying to secure FCC approval to upgrade the Starlink network, which currently operates 1,700-plus satellites in orbit. In the future, SpaceX wants to operate an even larger second-gen constellation made up of nearly 30,000 satellites.
The second-generation network is being designed to serve even more consumers with the long-term goal of supplying download speeds at 1Gbps and then 10Gbps. In contrast, Starlink is currently capable of beaming 100Mbps to 200Mbps download speeds to users on Earth.
The current challenge facing Starlink’s second-generation network is opposition from rival satellite broadband players, including Amazon. The e-commerce giant has been among the companies urging the FCC to reject SpaceX’s proposal for requesting clearance for two satellite configurations for the second-generation Starlink network, instead of just one.
“To this problem, Amazon proposed a simple remedy: settle on a single constellation proposal (as all others do) and resubmit the amendment,” Amazon told the FCC in September. Amazon’s opposition even briefly escalated into a war of words between the company and SpaceX that spilled out into social media.
Since then, other satellite broadband providers, including Viasat and EchoStar’s Hughes Network, have also called on the FCC to reject SpaceX’s proposal for allegedly violating the FCC’s procedures on securing satellite clearance. But in response, SpaceX has argued Amazon is merely using legal tactics to delay progress on Starlink when it’s clear the system can supply high-speed internet to consumers in need.
“To ensure service to more Americans expeditiously, SpaceX urges the Commission to quickly make its application available for public feedback,” the company told the FCC on Wednesday.