Amidst the anti-government protests in the country, Kenyans have realized that traditional internet infrastructure is susceptible to state disruption and thus unreliable.
On Tuesday evening, both data networks and Wi-Fi networks were throttled – sparking discontent from Kenyans who alleged that the government intended to interrupt the flow of information across social media. Many Kenyans, for the first time, had to scramble through app stores to find Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) that would serve their needs in the event of an internet shutdown. This is despite the Communications Authority of Kenya (CAK) issuing a statement on Monday denying that there were plans to shut down the internet on the slated day of the protests. The largest Telco, Safaricom, was blamed for acquescing to government directives to throttle its internet service. The company, however, said that the slow internet speeds are attributabe to two undersea cables that had been damaged.
The Alternative Safaricom’s public image took a hit this week, and this could be the opportunity for other internet players to seize the market. Starlink, a satellite internet service owned by billionaire Elon Musk, offers a 50GB data package for as low as KSh 1,300 per month.
However, Starlink has faced a slow uptake because of its expensive kit. The hardware prices cost about KSh 89,000. Between May and 10th June, the Starlink kit was offered at KSh 39,000. The time frame might have been too short to garner any meaningful subscribers, and the company may have to re-evaluate offer time brackets.
Earlier this week, Starlink announced ‘Starlink Mini’ antennae that would cost substantially less than the pilot product. Elon Musk replied to Kenyans on X (formerly Twitter) that the kit would be available in the country later this year.
“Starlink Mini will be about half the standard terminal price and available later this year,” said Elon Musk in a reply on X (formerly Twitter).
The ‘Starlink Mini’ is priced at US$ 599 in the United States but it could be priced differently once it enters the Kenyan market. The company intends to broaden the accessibility of satellite internet across the continent to reduce reliance on undersea cables that have been fraught with disruptions this year.
The company owns 6,000 satellites already and with cheaper hardware kits entering the market, global uptake could see rise exponentially. Currently, more than 90% of the world relies on undersea cables to provide internet for homes, educational institutions, and government installations.
Why Starlink?Safaricom’s claim that undersea cable damage was responsible for internet downtime could not be corroborated by the firms serving the country with the service. Cloudfare mentioned that the disruption was “government sanctioned” and Netblocks, an internet observatory, did not explicitly state it was a technical hitch.
Information flow is a crucial component in democratic societies as it enables citizens to demand accountability from their leaders. However, African nations with weak democratic organs perceive the internet service as a hindrance to their overtures.
Earlier this year during the Senegalese protests, the government ordered the internet to be shutdown. Since traditional broadcast media can be easily stifled, the internet era has been a headache for tyrannical governments. Citizens can still access VPNs which can bypass government-sanctioned shutdowns.
Starlink is a satellite internet service that cannot be curtailed by government as it is beyond their control. For this reason, it has seen heightened interest from people living in countries with unreliable broadband internet or countries prone to intermittent shutdowns.
Government knows this and that is why Starlink’s entry in Africa has seen growing reluctance from authorities. Zimbabwe lately approved the service but only limited its provision to one company which sought exclusive dealership. All in all, Starlink faces regulatory hurdles in other African countries because it could cripple government efforts to control the internet space during anti-government protests or elections.
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