Zimbabwe’s telecoms regulator POTRAZ finally announced the Starlink licencing today, 10 September. According the statement it released, POTRAZ licenced Starlink Zimbabwe (presumably a Space X /Starlink subsidiary) last week Friday 6 September. The same day, Starlink went live.
Based on the licence types mentioned in the statement, Starlink is paying a total US $575,000 for it.
POTRAZ has also said that the sale of Starlink kits can only be done by businesses it has cleared or licensed for it.
Here’s the full POTRAZ statement:
Press Statement on the Licensing of Starlink
On Friday the 6th of September 2024, the Postal and Telecommunications Regulatory Authority of Zimbabwe (POTRAZ) issued two licences to STARLINK ZIMBABWE (Pvt) Ltd, namely the Telecommunication Licence for Network Services and the Internet Services Provider (National) Licence.
This Licence-stack authorises STARLINK to provide Internet Services Throughout Zimbabwe using the STARLINK Low Earth Orbit (LEO) Satellite Constellation. In providing Internet Services in Zimbabwe, STARLINK is engaging Agencies, including established Network Operators and Internet Service Providers (ISPs) for the distribution of User Terminals (kits) and as appropriate, the provision of managed end-user services.
It is a condition of the STARLINK Licences that such Agencies, Dealers and ISPs shall be subject to clearance by POTRAZ. This condition applies to both existing and prospective ISPs and Network Operators. The sale or distribution of STARLINK User Terminals without appropriate licensing and clearance is, therefore, an offence punishable by law.
Meanwhile POTRAZ is convinced that the addition of the LEO Technology layer onto the Zimbabwean ecosystem of Network Technologies would enhance ubiquitous and meaningful broadband connectivity throughout Zimbabwe. Connecting the unconnected and bridging the digital divide remain key priorities for Zimbabwe as we journey towards vision 2030.
POTRAX Director General
For reference here are the POTRAZ Licence categories and fees showing the US $575k of the licences.
Disruption: Starlink License Fees vs Incumbents
The license category Starlink falls under is the same other ISP and internet providers will be in, except for those whose legacy licence tenure is yet to run its full 14 or 20 year term. The incumbent internet access providers: Liquid, Dandemutande, Powertel, Telco and Africom likely all have legacy licences that cost them US $5.5M.
Mobile and Fixed Operators on the other hand (Econet, TelOne, NetOne) would have paid US $137M and $100M respectively. Well, we don’t know the extent government companies pay these licenses, but that’s a different matter.
Starlink is disrupting all these incumbents with lower consumer prices, and also paying lower licence fees. Its satellite infrastructure is just a superior technology, and the company has the cash to invest in capacity and to subsidize prices. The SpaceX technology provides global coverage, something the incumbents cannot do even given another 10 years. Network expansion for Fibre, LTE, 5G and traditional VSAT technologies is quite expensive to undertake. Worse, Zimbabwe hasn’t exactly been a conducive place to do business for them.
You’d be tempted to think the mobile operators may not be hit as hard seeing, Starlink is not a mobile phone company. You’d be right only to a small extent. The reality is that Starlink itself is innovating fast to reduce the size of its antenna so it’s as mobile as possible – something you can carry in your backpack. This allows the highest value mobile subscribers to move around with their personal unlimited internet, allowing them to make WhatsApp calls, bypassing the mobile operators.
Incumbent operators will indeed have to innovate fast to stay relevant to their customers.
22 comments
This means other players will not reduce price to match Starlink as they have infrastructure costs etc to worry about
This then should announce the official kick off…..game on chaps. The abuse/rip offs endured from current providers, will hopefully be a bad memory going forward.
Local ISPs are waiting to see the numbers of Starlink kits to be bought before they lower prices.They still believe $350 Zimbos only a few will afford.They don’t mind losing 50000 people when they still have 14 million more to cash on the majority who can’t afford Starlink
Expect price reduction first week of October,the results will be out. Everyone is playing wait and see.Only Econet made a move testing the grounds, more changes coming soon
For $350 people will still buy it. Check a number of people who bought laptops above $500 in Zimbabwe, TVs, iPhone above $600. Trust me they’ll still sacrifice to buy starlink kit, to reduce costs on the ling run.
True
In the ghetto we will do group buying lol
Taura hako
Statistically you are assuming that 100% of Zimbabwean population uses phones and also that all phone users are using internet to be enough customers for Those people, I would appreciate if you visited you statement once again with tethoughts with it
This means people are still going to be paying more
The truth is available is still going to be an issue because clearly next to noone will buy from the black market that has addresses that are foreign and also their version of dish is now inferior compared to what starlink is now offering the clients directly and knowing zim all those who are going to be verified to sell in zim are not going to be dishing out kits like its confetti exclusivity is going to be in play so the growth is not going to be that rapid in zim bcz most will also not likely oay directly to starlink in a way since it takes longer to get as compared to buying from.like frampol who will have then in stock so guess who will frampol be selling to first its the same old story to me corruption will also have its way in getting these kits i forsee some crying foul pamberi apo. Muchaitsvaga telone kana liquid because technology wise fiber links are miles ahead of satellite internet. Better yet the ground station that starlink use for Africa in Nigeria gets its internet from local fiber companies saka pachine nyaya moment ma ground station avemo mu zim starlink yakubhadhara mari ku telone or liquid for its fixed BROADBAND service prices will sky rocket ska people should be careful pakuita switch providers apa bcz also 50usd is not small money in zim
Totangira ipapo. As we wait for your parables and dreams for now we are switching and making money with Starlink. Garai ikoko henyu
Well said. He is talking about his dreams.
Lol sit down bro😂
Isusu takatonomhanyira econet offer iyo kkk devil u know kusvika tazoona long run
But speeds are already locked
We have been fleeced by our so called mobile operators far too long, I think the best they could do is to be focus much on fibre optics and create a dominion in that field or simple go down cause competition they are no way near, it’ll take them years to match up besides Starlink would not wait for them,
I am only interested in knowing what POTRAZ use this money on. USD$137 000 000 for a license is insane. What does Potraz do with that money? Buy its executives top of the range cars and plush homes in Borrowdale?
Starlink is working on incorporating voice into it’s network. When this is done, the incumbents will have a new nemissis in form of the Tesla phone. Some on these incumbents will have no choice but to close shop simply because they just won’t be able to compete with the juggernaut that is Starlink.
Judging from Elon’s past (PayPal), he will do exactly what Econet has been all along doing to it’s customers, now that they will have monopoly over the voice and data spaces.
I short, Starlink is a dictator in the making. I don’t like the incumbents for their shortcomings and stuff, but if POTRAZ throws them under the bus, our cyber future will solely be in the hands of Starlink.
Starlink chibaba.
The disruption is real and likely to lead to collapse of the local incumbents. It would be interesting to talk about the potential of setting up downstream businesses behind the router. Same way so many used cars in Zim led to an outbreak of repair shops , fitment centres , cars washes , spare parts retailers , etc.
Also remember Starlink is bringing satellite to mobile tech soon . That means you won’t be tied down to a network soon . Just having a phone would be enough to call from wherever , even on a plane. That’s the real game changer .
Telone will be hit harder