Starlink reveals subscription and equipment prices in Brazil

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Elon Musk’s long-awaited satellite internet operator, Starlink, has just revealed its prices for the Brazilian market. Considering the equipment, it will cost around R$11,480 (US$2,180) in the initial year. However, the promise of global coverage, focused on remote areas, remains the great goal of the project that will arrive in Brazil in 2023.

After more than a year registered in the National Register of Legal Entities in Brazil (Cadastro Nacional da Pessoa Jurídica – CNPJ), Starlink only received Brazil’s National Telecommunications Agency’s (Anatel) authorization to operate satellites at the end of January.

In February 2021, Starlink started its pre-sale in Brazil, charging US$99 to reserve the internet via satellite.

At the time, the company sent e-mails to interested parties and stated that paying for the reservation would guarantee a place in the waiting line for the service in Brazil. The company’s site now shows the values in the Brazilian currency for services and equipment.

Service monthly fee: R$530
Equipment (Imported): R$2,670
Shipping and handling: R$365

Director of Technology at Sage Networks, Thiago Ayub, pointed out in a post on Twitter that the values should still include taxes. Based on the IRS tax calculation, the rate is 60% on the total value of equipment and freight. In this case, the estimate is that the total cost of the first year is around R$11,000.

The high price of the equipment, priced at US$499 for the antenna, is still the result of several cost reductions banked by the company. In April 2021, Gwynne Shotwell, President of SpaceX, stated that the company has a loss of approximately US$1,000 on the sale of each unit of hardware since the production cost is still too high.

STARLINK WILL COMPETE WITH OTHER SATELLITE OPERATORS

Elon Musk said in the middle of last year that Starlink’s service is not for everyone. For the CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, his satellite internet project should target something between 3% and 5% of the world’s population and those who do not yet have an internet connection. He explained that Starlink complements 5G and fiber optics with its promise of global coverage.

After all, there is no reason to contract Starlink internet in urban centers. The satellite internet prices cannot compete with the standard carrier plans in Brazilian cities. Vivo, for example, charges R$99 per month for the 200 Mb/s plan.

However, the traditional wired and fiber optic internet coverage is still far from covering the whole Brazilian territory. In this sense, Starlink will arrive next year to compete with other satellite internet providers, such as Hughesnet and Viasat.

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