(Credit: Sergey Dudikov via Shutterstock)
While Starlink’s recent price hike caught many customers off guard, SpaceX is trying to reassure them that their discounted rates are safe, for now.
On Wednesday, several subscribers in the US, Australia, and the UK reported receiving an email from SpaceX titled "No Immediate Change to Your Monthly Pricing."
“Because you have an active promotion or introductory discount on your service line(s), your monthly price will not change right now,” the company wrote. “You'll continue enjoying your discounted rate. Once your current promotion concludes, your service plan will transition to the new monthly price referenced in our previous email.”
The email seems to be a bit of damage control after some angry users accused Starlink of using “bait and switch” tactics. In recent months, SpaceX has been offering various temporary discounts on its Starlink Residential plans to attract new subscribers.
(Credit: Starlink Facebook group)But on May 16, the company upset numerous customers with a $5 to $10 rate hike. The change also created confusion for some new users who also received the email about the price increase, even though they had just signed up for Starlink at a discounted rate.
“I signed up for the same promo. I just received it and they sent me a bill at full price, no promo,” wrote one user on Reddit.
In a support page, SpaceX clarified that “if your service is currently receiving promotional, introductory, or discounted pricing, your monthly price will remain unchanged until that pricing period ends.” Still, the company’s original email created some mixed messaging, since it also noted the price hike would appear on customers’ next billing cycle on or after June 18.
“It seems like it would have been pretty easy to NOT send these sorts of emails out to people who are on promotions, especially people who signed up under one and haven't even got their damned hardware yet,” wrote another user on Reddit.
It looks like SpaceX’s new email tries to set the record straight. The company also sent the message when some users reported receiving a discount for Standby Mode, which doubled in price to $10 per month.
"After canceling my Standby Mode, Starlink emailed me offering Standby for $4 a month for 12 months if I signed back up. I received a confirmation email that they would honor the promo," wrote another user on Facebook.
Still, the price hike has sparked concerns that Starlink will become unaffordable as the Elon Musk-led company prepares for an IPO. SpaceX’s regulatory filing revealed that Starlink had 10.3 million paid subscriptions in Q1, double the 5 million it had a year ago. However, the average revenue per user fell to $66 per month in Q1, a year-over-year decrease from $86.