WHY STARLINK IS ILLEGAL IN SOUTH AFRICA!

0:00 so here's something interesting Elon musk's SpaceX Venture styling has revolutionized internet access in many parts of the world with its constellation of low earth orbit satellites offering high-speed low latency internet but it's still not available in South Africa so I'm here to unpack to you the why yes it's got government involved but let me explain in fact before I even get there just recently Zimbabwe became the eighth African country country to license styling to provide satellite internet services in a deal involving one of President emim naga's Close Associates tricky president mangaka made the announcement around the 25th of May this

0:45 year as he revealed that starlink would partner with a local company IMC Communications the company is owned by wicknell Cho who is regularly seen with the president however starlink will only be accessible through shiv company which received the licensing rights from the postal telecommunications regulatory authority of Zimbabwe this information is key for you to understand starlink has local Partners in Zimbabwe keep that in mind as this video progresses so what is starlink starlink is a constellation of thousands of low earth orbit satellites that are significantly closer to Earth than traditional satellites Elon Musk has been launching these into orbit for many years at a much faster

1:30 and cheaper rate due to him having a technological advantage through his space company the proximity of these low earth orbit satellites translates into faster speeds compared to traditional satellite internet starlink also offers significantly faster download and upload speeds potentially reaching well over 100 megabits per second another Advantage is low latency where latency is the amount of time that it takes for data to travel starling's lower latency allows for for smoother video conferencing online gaming and realtime applications to run faster than from other links starlink also offers a wider coverage the sheer number of starlink satellites in orbit promises broader internet access reaching remote areas often underserved by traditional

2:17 terrestrial infrastructure however South Africa despite its significant need for improved internet connectivity remains absent from starling's operational map but Zimbabwe is many want to make it a complex issue but it's actually really simple I'll explain the most significant hurdle for starlink in South Africa is the lack of a proper operating license from the Independent Communications authority of South Africa iasa the national telecommunications regulator they require all companies offering satellite internet services to acquire a license in the country while sty link has expressed interest in entering the South African Market it hasn't formally applied for a license as

3:04 of June 2024 or even the making of this video but here's where things get even more interesting iasa has cautioned companies against importing and selling stalling user terminals they've even called it flat out illegal some people have been known to go across the border into countries that have starlink like Mozambique and then they come back into South Africa install the and use them illegally starink on the other hand claims that they are abiding by International regulations and they've accuse South African resellers of violating its terms of service and copyrights by using starlink logos to Market unauthorized resales in the country and even in neighboring countries this creates a catch22

3:50 situation starlink can't operate in South Africa without a license but iasa may not issue one until starlink complies with local regulations regarding resellers and other operational aspects one of those operational aspects is be triple be or broad-based lack economic empowerment is a policy that all companies operating in South Africa must adhere to this policy aims to redress historical economic inequalities by requiring companies operating in South Africa to have a certain percentage of ownership or management positions held by black individuals generally this is around 30% at a minimum while the exact details of the styling's potential non-compliance

4:35 with triple be remains unclear to a lot of us it's been cited as a reason for the delay in obtaining the license ensuring some level of be compliance and adherence demonstrates a commitment to inclusivity and will also align with the national development goals of South Africa however it's important to note that triple PE like requirements are often points of negotiation with foreign companies entering the South African market and starlink has in some areas adhered to these requirements like in Zimbabwe finding a middle ground that satisfies both starling's ownership structure and South Africa's empowerment goals is the only way forward at least that's what it looks like to me while starlink offers potential advantages

5:22 there are cost considerations to take into play for instance Hardware the starlink user terminal kit which which includes a dish a router can cost around $600 or 10,500 Grand approximately then there's also subscription fees these fees can range from $100 to $500 1,700 R to almost $8,700 Rand this will obviously depend on the data plans that you choose for urban areas with more established fiber optic and cable internet options these costs might seem excessive however for more remote communities with limited or no internet access starlink could be a GameChanger but the price is high and

6:08 it's such a great barrier to climb the potential benefits for Rural South Africa are undeniable having starlink would Bridge the digital divide starlink could connect previously isolated communities enable access to education Healthcare resources and economic opportunities that exist online it can also Empower rural businesses through creating reliable internet that can open doors for e-commerce remote work opportunities and improved communication within rural communities however the affordability Factor has to be looked at here because it presents a significant challenge The Upfront cost of the user Terminals and the ongoing subscription fees could be prohibitive for many

6:54 lowincome households in rural areas so technically the only rural people who would be able to afford this would be the likes of commercial farmers and people of that ilk so the argument that starlink could help rural communities in its current form Falls flat at the door it's just not geared for our type of rural communities and even their affordability like many other countries have the right to protect their industry South Africa has the right to do the same I really like what Elon is doing here for the world but there are rules to everything and US companies know this this why is it suddenly different when they must operate in Africa specifically South Africa a more developed and well regulated market we know how to do

7:40 business here and how to do it properly the other thing is that ikasa has a responsibility to ensure a fair and competitive telecommunications landscape while styling poast Innovative technology our existing providers like a Vodacom MTN and other fiber Network operating companies like maybe even a dark fiber Africa vumatel liquid telecoms and many others these companies have invested heavily in infrastructure and they've established a base for their customers they have adhered to the laws of this country and they also pay taxes this thing is easy man guys but starlink is making it incredibly hard and even more complex than what it needs to be and also a lot of media in South Africa they want government to do what they want and that actually wouldn't be fair

8:25 at all please actually you know what let's have this conversation in the comments a sudden unregulated entry by starlink into our Market could disrupt it potentially leading to job losses and instability in the entire sector on top of that iasa needs to ensure that starlink operates within our established regulations the laws are the laws and they haven't changed importing and selling user terminals without licenses actually undermines the very authority of iasa and it also sets a dangerous precedence for other foreign companies we need clear guidelines to safeguard consumer rights and also to ensure that starlink and even other companies adhere to our established quality of service standards like I stated before South Africa has already established internet

9:11 providers these companies have rightly so lobbied against starlinks entry fearing that it will disrupt the market if they don't do it properly starlinks entry and reported broader internet access could put pressure on these existing providers forcing them to adapt or potentially lose customers to some extent and many would think that that's something that's fair or should happen right you're thinking competition is good but competition that doesn't have to adhere to our local laws isn't really competition is it although it's always very hard to side with them I think on this one the telecoms companies are justified in doing what they're doing now those arguing for starlink to be allowed into the country claim that the

9:57 South African government's motive is to block starlink and protect Legacy internet monopolies which charge High tariffs to their customers which in turn they milk as cash cows I mean the country has to get tax somewhere and allowing entrance like starlink and the likes to not pay tax isn't the answer either maybe the answer is somewhere in the middle but we must be clear data prices charged by local telecoms companies must be checked and scrutinized they're very high high for instance in neighboring Zambia a much poorer economy to South Africa a gig of data is sold for just $13 or 24 r60 but in South Africa the same data costs

10:42 almost double $260 or around 50 Rand the World Bank in 2022 ranked South Africa as the world's most financially unequal country and the Injustice is evident in internet access 7.5 million low income South Africans are paying 80 times more than middle and upper class citizens to browse the internet this is what project sees where a nonprofit organization revealed in their 2021 study we all know that this is happening we all understand that data is expensive and we will deal with the telecom's companies and the competition commission is already doing a lot of that work prices for data will start to drop but by the logic of those who want Starling here how does it make

11:29 sense to bring in an even pricier alternative that more people won't be able to afford a shm we have to be serious guys activism for activism sake doesn't make sense there's also the issue of data security South Africa like many nations has established data residency laws these laws mandate that certain types of data generated within the country particularly personal information and sensitive financial data must must be stored on service physically located in the country in South Africa these regulations are also there to protect citizen privacy data stored locally falls under South African data protection laws offering you the citizen greater control and even

12:15 recourse in the case of data breaches there's also a reduction of foreign surveillance into your data also things like hacking become a little bit harder to do when data is stored offshore you could potentially make yourselves vulnerable to access by Foreign governments intelligence agencies and even nefarious actors starling's current model raises concerns regarding data residency data transmitted through Starling satellites might be rooted through servers outside of South Africa we don't know and this will potentially violate our residency laws when it comes to data and it will also expose our information to people who are accountable to our courts if starlink

13:01 really wants to democratize connectivity then maybe they should change their stance and possibly even offer that 30% for broader access nonprofit initiatives the South African government in collaboration with starlink and other stakeholders can explore solutions to make styling more accessible to rural areas as part of their license proposals but again these type of initiatives would be prioritizing one company and not not the industry so that would still be preferential treatment for one company with no industry upside like I don't know guys but I think it's always easier to say that government is being uncooperative but in this case the company starlink needs to also give

13:47 something in order to enter the South African Market that's my view what's yours starling's absence from South Africa's internet landscape is for some a missed opportunity for both the company and the country for a small sector of the population that would like this type of service but I don't think that the current pricing that styling offers makes sense to most in South Africa but there are some who obviously clearly need it addressing the regulatory hurdles navigating potential competition concerns and focusing on the mutual benefits can unlock stylings potential in order to bridge the digital divide in South Africa in some way I'm not putting that aside but for me this actually isn't a complex situation at

14:33 all sty link needs to adhere to South African laws and they need to give as much as they believe that they're going to get on this one I have to side with the government the South African government has taken a very cautious approach to starling's entry and this reflects a stance of commitment to the responsible development of South Africa's telecoms industry while the technology offered by starlink offers exciting possibilities ensuring Fair competition protecting consumers and addressing affordability concerns like data security are crucial rightly so we all want better and cheaper internet in the country but the developmental cost of that can't burden South Africa in the long term by creating a weaker telecoms

15:19 industry otherwise what's the point let's chat in the comments thank you for watching till this point please check out one of our other videos and maybe they'll just be as interesting as this one see you in the next one