Starlink orders ICASAsePush to halt operations in SA

US BILLIONAIRE Elon Musk’s international internet service provider Starlink has informed ICASAsePush, a privately-owned company that was said to be the leading provider of Starlink internet services in South Africa, to cease its local operations following the intervention of South African authorities.

- JONISAYI MAROMO

In South Africa, Starlink is listed as “service date is unknown” while it is starting this year in Lesotho, Namibia, Tanzania, Congo and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Its services are available in eSwatini, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Malawi and Burundi, among other African countries.

Icasa chairperson Mothibi Ramusi said he wrote to SpaceX, seeking clear answers on whether the international service provider was operating in South Africa without a licence.

“I must indicate and confirm that, as an authority, we wrote to the company SpaceX because we wanted to get affirmation... because sometimes you have fake news and as an authority, with the limitations we have in terms of monitoring equipment and tools, I took it upon myself, supported by council and our exco, and SpaceX has responded, and I must say the response worried me as well as the chair.