Comment

Comment on Starlink loses out on $886 million in rural broadband subsidies

Reminder that Starlink is the internet equivalent to the Hyperloop.

There are untold billions that the government gave out as subsidies to increase internet speeds across the nation and bring internet to everyone across the U.S. Which mysteriously vanished.

All the while now Elon has been promising vaporware and bullshit, as he usually does while Tech Bros, billionaires and the media gobble it up.

source

Sort:hotnew top

jonne@infosec.pub ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago
Eh, starlink at least works by all accounts. I guess the jury is still out if it’s sustainable as a business because the satellites are deorbiting like crazy.

source
- echo64@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago
  If your business plan involves firing out infinite rockets full of cell towers forever. You should probably just spend the money on copper instead.
  
  source
  - Ilovethebomb@lemm.ee ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago
    I don’t think you quite understand just how remote some people are. Besides, Starlink is also being used on vessels and aircraft, good luck getting copper out to them.
    
    Also, fibre optic is how the cool people Internet these days.
    
    source
    echo64@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago
    I don’t think you understand that a lot of copper is still less than infinite rockets forever
    
    source
    -> View More Comments
  - GBU_28@lemm.ee ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago
    This makes zero sense. If that was profitable it would have been done already.
    
    source
    echo64@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago
    It’s not, neither is starlink. That’s the whole point. You have two things, you can either launch infinite rockets forever or lay some infrastructure that we can benefit from forever.
    
    Why America chooses not to lay infrastructure is beyond me. More so why Americans justify it so often. This shit is why America doesn’t have trains.
    
    source
    -> View More Comments
- spudwart@spudwart.com ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago
  They aren’t sustainable because they are de-orbiting but they’re also supposed to be low-cost and high speed.
  
  If the prices aren’t low-cost, and the speeds continue to decrease, it’s entire purpose is defeated.
  
  source
cameron_vale@lemm.ee ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago
Not vaporware. It actually works very well. And if you live in the sticks you thank your blessed angels for it.

Dummy.

source
GBU_28@lemm.ee ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago
Starlink, as a service for those that have it, is not Vaporware. It functions, pretty well.

Starlink as a government subsidized, nationally impactful program is Vaporware

source
Cowbee@lemm.ee ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago
Hyperloop should be halted and replaced with high speed rail, and starlink should be nationalized. Musk keeps rinsing and repeating his grand privatized infrastructure projects where he essentially embezzles public funds.

source