Elon Musk’s Starlink technology is adopted by Aussie telco Telstra

Elon Musk has secured a world-first partnership with an Australian company in what’s set to be a massive move for many customers.

Elon Musk’s Starlink company has secured a world-first partnership with Telstra as part of a revolutionary plan to deliver better services to Australia’s remote areas.

Starlink’s Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellite connectivity has been adopted by Telstra to offer home phone service and Starlink broadband services as a bundle offer in rural parts of the country which lack the NBN.

Customers will also have access to local technical support and the option of having devices professionally installed.

“This agreement also provides connectivity options for our business customers, with a higher bandwidth business option available in areas without fixed and mobile connectivity,” a statement from the telco said.

The company said the offer would be available to Telstra customers and businesses in Australia and select countries overseas towards the end of 2023.

Pricing and plan details will be revealed later in the year.

Elon Musk’s Starlink has secured a world-first partnership with Telstra. Picture: Alain JOCARD/AFP

The Starlink offering would add to the company’s existing mix of technologies used in its voice and broadband services, including NBN fixed broadband, its mobile network and older copper and radio networks.

“The addition of Starlink will provide an additional connectivity option for people and businesses in rural and remote locations where distance and terrain make it difficult to provide quality connectivity with existing terrestrial networks,” the telco said.

Starlink’s LEO satellite connectivity send and receive signals faster than traditional geostationary satellites with multiple satellites that work as part of a “constellation”.

“As well as offering great data throughput, the proximity of these satellites reduces latency making them a great and more consistent option for services that need low latency, like voice and video calls,” Telstra stated.

The new offering would become available later this year, Telstra said. Picture: NCA NewsWire/Luis Enrique Ascui

“The latency, download speeds and general experience in most circumstances will be far superior to copper-based ADSL and be better suited for most modern connectivity needs.”

The move signalled a “big leap” towards closing Australia’s “digital divide”, Telstra said.

“Our team has been testing out in the field Starlink’s service and how we can best offer it to customers, including evolving our own modem specifically to support Starlink connectivity and Aussie households. We’re extremely excited to show you what this looks like later in the year.

“We truly believe in improving connectivity for all Australians, regardless of where you live work and play. Adding LEO satellites as an option both for customers and to bolster our connectivity options in regional areas brings us a big leap closer to closing this digital divide.”

Originally published as Elon Musk’s Starlink technology is adopted by Aussie telco Telstra