Starlink Leads Global Satellite Internet Boom as New Competitors Prepare to Launch

Although new customers are not being taken on right now, Elon Musk’s Starlink is officially providing satellite internet in the UAE, paving the way for more providers to potentially enter the local marketplace.

As reported in The National, Starlink has secured a decade-long licence from UAE regulators, offering a viable alternative to traditional fibre internet services provided by du or e&. Customers across the emirates who initially signed up have reported receiving their hardware recently and are eagerly anticipating the launch of their services.

Andrea Faggiano, a partner at the Arthur D Little consultancy in Dubai, projects that satellite internet services will likely capture 10 to 15 percent of the overall internet market, though he notes the share could climb even higher. “I would say in 15 years, the satellite technology will be massive – 15 per cent. That may even be a conservative number,” he stated, adding that it is a serious competitor.

Recent reports from Starlink indicate the company reached 12 million global satellite internet customers in the second quarter of this year, doubling its customer base from the previous year. While market research firms like Grand View Research point to obstacles such as high initial deployment costs and signal delays, the global satellite internet market is still projected to surge from roughly $13.3 billion annually to $35.7 billion by 2033, driven by continuous investment in low Earth orbit satellites.

“I do expect the market to grow, at least for the next decade,” noted Dr Nitinder Mohan, an assistant professor at Delft University of Technology in the Netherlands, pointing out that key users will include individual consumers alongside airlines and ship operators.

While Starlink remains the dominant global player, new competitors are emerging. Amazon's Leo service is slated to offer consumer availability late this year or early 2027, while Blue Origin—backed by Amazon founder Jeff Bezos—is entering the industry through its TeraWave network, targeting corporate and government sectors.

Despite being at capacity in the UAE with advertised monthly plans starting from Dh300, Starlink services are available across more than 160 countries, including Oman, Bahrain, Qatar, Yemen, Jordan, and Israel.

In international markets, subscription costs vary. In the UK, users pay roughly £40 (Dh199) for 100 Mbps, £60 (Dh298) for 200 Mbps, and £80 (Dh397) for 400 Mbps. Prices are even lower in Germany and France, where entry-level plans start at €35 (Dh149) per month.

Experts explain that Starlink reaches capacity limits because individual satellites can only manage a specific number of users within a defined location. However, as Prof Nishanth Sastry from the University of Surrey notes, capacity is continually expanding as more satellites are launched globally.

Dr Mohan mentioned that Starlink's deployment of Version 3 satellites will help alleviate these ongoing capacity restrictions. Nevertheless, for consumers with access to reliable fibre infrastructure—which typically advertises much higher speeds than satellite connections—the incentives for switching may remain minimal.

“If you have existing fibre connectivity, it’s likely you’re not going to gain much,” Dr Mohan said. “If you’re in one of the hard-to-reach areas, for example a mountainous region or desert, where you cannot make a fibre roll-out, satellite connectivity can be a boon.”

Prof Sastry, speaking from his own experience as a Starlink subscriber, noted that the service quality rivals terrestrial wired or cellular options, delivering speeds up to 100 Mbps for streaming, though users might experience minor latency shifts due to severe weather conditions or handover interruptions between satellites every few minutes.