SpaceX Dishes Out Free Starlink Hardware Outside US To Drive Up Subscriptions

Elon Musk's outer space exploration company SpaceX is offering its Starlink space-based internet hardware for free outside the U.S. in a bid to bolster its dominance in the sector.

What happened: While Starlink is offering discounts on its hardware and services in the U.S., the company has taken it a step further in some markets like Italy, where Starlink is offering its standard dish — which is available for €349 (around $386) — for free.

This offer is available with the condition that the users will have to commit to a 12-month subscription plan. The offer is also being made available in Australia. Official documents say that users opting for this plan will only be required to pay for the dish should they change their address, cancel, fail to pay the monthly bill, transfer their subscription or modify their plan.

Why it matters: Starlink is perhaps the biggest player in the space-based internet sector, followed by Amazon Inc.'s Project Kuiper. With a 7000-strong low Earth orbit satellite constellation, Musk's company has a global user base of over 5 million users and is available in multiple markets, with plans to expand into the global south in markets like India.

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However, Musk's businesses have taken a hit due to the billionaire's right-wing political views. Tesla Inc. TSLA superchargers, services, dealerships as well as vehicles like the Cybertruck have been a target of vandalism in the U.S. Tesla has also seen a decline in sales across Europe, with the UK being the only exception to this trend.

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