Elon Musk's Starlink gets swift nod from regulators to do business in Philippines

MANILA, Philippines — SpaceX, the aerospace company of eccentric billionaire and world’s richest man Elon Musk, is now set to do business in the Philippines “in the coming months” after regulators swiftly approved its registration in hopes of changing the country’s internet service landscape.

In a statement, the National Telecommunications Commission said it expedited the approval of registration of Starlink Internet Services Philippines Inc. as a “value-added service” or VAS.

The VAS registration now allows the company to directly access satellite systems, as well as build and operate broadband facilities to offer internet services, the NTC said. The approval was handed out 30 minutes after SpaceX submitted the documents.

“The NTC is steadfast in helping ensure that roll-out of Starlink’s internet access services will be done expeditiously and professionally," NTC commissioner Gamaliel Cordoba said.

The swift entry of SpaceX came a few months after President Rodrigo Duterte signed into law the amendments to the Public Service Act, which now allows foreigners to fully own telco companies in the country. The law was meant to intensify competition in the local telco space and other key industries such as airlines and railways in a bid to improve services for Filipinos.

READ: Duterte signs law allowing full foreign ownership in key sectors like telcos

In fact, the amendments to the PSA were a main factor in SpaceX’s decision to do business in the Philippines, which is poised to be the first country in Southeast Asia to access the company's low earth orbit satellite network constellation called “Starlink”.

Starlink, which purportedly offers download speeds of 100 to 200 Mbps, is comprised of over 1,600 satellites.  

But Terry Ridon, convenor at local think tank Infrawatch PH, said SpaceX’s ability to shake up the local telco industry would depend on the affordability of its service.

"While the entry of Starlink may change the internet service landscape in the Philippines, it will only be a gamechanger if it can compete on price and services, given its high upfront fees at around $600," Ridon said.

"It will however be most effective in areas where fixed-line and mobile internet are difficult to access, such as mountainous areas and island barangays, as satellite technology can penetrate even the most isolated areas in the country," Ridon added.

NTC projected Starlink's services to become a fixture in urban and suburban areas, and in rural areas that have yet to access decent internet services. 

"It (SpaceX) can work with the government to ensure that rural communities are able to reliably access the internet for information, commerce, and education in order to spur growth in the countryside," Ridon added.