Japan Is First Asian Country With Starlink Satellite Internet Services

This long-exposure image shows the trail of a group of SpaceX's Starlink satellites passing over Uruguay as seen from the countryside near Capilla del Sauce on Feb. 7, 2021. (Mariana Suarez/AFP via Getty Images)

Starlink, the SpaceX satellite internet provider owned by Elon Musk, has officially debuted in Japan, the company announced on Twitter on Monday, making the country the first in Asia to have access to Starlink.

https://twitter.com/SpaceX/status/1579587196033462272

Japan’s telecommunication firm KDDI Corporation said in September 2021 that it selected Starlink as its network backhaul provider to deliver “high-speed, low-latency broadband internet” to 1,200 remote mobile towers.

“As soon as 2022, KDDI will be able to offer an urban mobile connectivity experience to its rural mobile customers,” the company said in a statement at the time.

“An experimental license has been issued by the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications to operate the ground station for Starlink service installed at KDDI’s Yamaguchi Satellite Communication Center,” it added.

KDDI stated that both companies have been conducting a series of technical demonstrations to evaluate Starlink’s quality and performance.

Starlink is a subsidiary of SpaceX, the U.S.-based aerospace manufacturer and space exploration company founded by Musk. It has more than 1,500 low-orbit satellites designed to bring broadband services to remote areas.

Earlier in May, Starlink was granted approval by the Philippine National Telecommunications Commission to operate as a “value-added service provider,” allowing it to access satellite systems and build broadband facilities.

The company is expected to offer the Philippines low-latency satellite internet access ranging from 100 to 200 megabits per second, particularly in regions that are “unserved or underserved” with internet access services.