2024-04-16 08:25:58
This is news that risks having the effect of a bomb for millions of Internet users around the world. Starlink, SpaceX’s satellite internet service, plans to disconnect its satellite dishes from April 30, 2024 in areas where the service is not yet officially available. A radical decision that could plunge entire sections of the planet into digital silence.
SpaceX goes on the offensive against roaming users
According to exclusive information obtained by 237online.com, SpaceX sent a message to certain users identified as being in “ roaming“, that is to say using the Starlink service in countries or regions where it is not yet marketed.
« We have detected that your Starlink antenna is being used in a country where service is not authorized. If you are not in an official service area by April 30, 2024, your internet access will be interrupted“, would thus threaten the message, sowing panic among the subscribers concerned.
Millions of users in the dark
Because there are millions of people around the world who have relied on Starlink to access the internet in areas poorly or not served by traditional providers. Individuals, businesses, schools, hospitals… So many users who today find themselves in total uncertainty.
« It is a disaster “alarms Moussa, an entrepreneur based in a rural area of Cameroon which invested in a Starlink antenna to develop its activity. “Without internet, I’m going to have to go out of business. I can’t afford to move to a big city just to have access to the network.”he confides, bitterly.
A decision dictated by regulatory constraints?
If SpaceX has not yet officially communicated the reasons for this drastic decision, many see it as the consequence of regulatory constraints which hinder the deployment of Starlink in many countries.
« Each state has its own rules regarding telecommunications, frequencies, licenses… It is a legal and technical headache for an operator like Starlink to adapt to all these legislations“, explains an expert in the space sector who requested anonymity.
States called upon to clarify their position
Faced with this situation, many voices are being raised to call on the States concerned to clarify their position vis-à-vis Starlink and to do everything possible to allow their citizens to continue to benefit from this innovative service.
« It’s a question of digital sovereignty, but also of equal opportunities”argues Mariam, a community activist who fights for internet access in remote areas of Cameroon. “Starlink is for many the only option to connect to the world. Depriving them of this service is condemning them to isolation and marginalization”she protests.
Race against time for millions of Internet users
As the fateful deadline of April 30 approaches, it is a real race against time that begins for millions of Starlink users around the world. Are they going to be suddenly disconnected? Will their governments succeed in reaching an agreement with SpaceX? The future of their internet access is more than ever dependent on these questions.
Only one certainty: this decision by Starlink, if confirmed, risks creating an unprecedented digital earthquake. A massive blackout which could have disastrous consequences on the economy, education and health of many countries. A disaster scenario that no one dares to imagine, but which is already haunting people’s minds.
The ball is now in the court of the States and SpaceX. It’s up to them to find a solution, and quickly. Because for millions of Internet users around the world, each day that passes is a day of reprieve. An agonizing countdown that brings them a little closer to the digital precipice. The clock is ticking, the anxiety is mounting. The future of their connection to the world hangs by a thread, or rather a satellite signal. A signal that could suddenly go out on April 30, plunging them into deafening silence.