Satellite Internet: EU plans own Starlink alternative

SpaceX’s Starlink satellite Internet service is currently on its own. However, that could change in the future, as the European Union is apparently planning a direct competitor.

EU satellite Internet close to approval

No matter whether as support in the Ukraine war or for well-heeled customers quite privately. SpaceX’s Starlink satellite Internet is growing in popularity and will soon launch also on airplanes.

So far, however, there is no competition for Elon Musk’s company. That could change soon, however, because the European Union wants to launch its own alternative. Plans to that effect were envisioned as early as February 2022, as Reuters reports.

EU states and the EU Parliament could agree as early as next week, the report adds. According to the report, the EU’s own satellite Internet in low Earth orbit is to be a project costing around six billion euros.

Funding is to be split roughly 50/50 between the EU and several private companies. As t3n reports, 2.4 billion euros are to come from various EU programs, with the remaining 3.6 billion euros coming from private companies.

• More: Starlink: Satellite Internet for 5G smartphones and cheaper price

Launch as early as 2025?

The starting gun could, if the project is waved through, already from the year 2025. By 2027, 170 satellites for the Internet network should then be put into orbit.

Furthermore, according to the magazine Heise, the project has been in the works for some time and a feasibility study was commissioned in 2020 that cost around 7.1 million euros.

The decision of the European Union is expected already in the coming week. Recently, the calls for a SpaceX alternative have become louder and louder, but it will still take a while before it can actually be launched – provided it is approved.