Here's how people are already using Starlink in Pakistan

Amid widespread outages and slow connection speeds across the country, local IT companies have found a way to “illegally” use services offered by Starlink, the satellite-based internet provider owned by American billionaire Elon Musk.

Reports quoted a senior executive at an IT company as saying that they were using Starlink's services since they needed reliable and uninterrupted connection to cater to overseas customers.

According to the official, the company had ordered all required equipment from the United Kingdom (UK), and even though the service was costlier, it had taken away their worries of losing business.

“Starlink’s standard residential package is GBP 79 [around PKR 27,000] while business packages start at GBP 110 [around PKR 37,000] per month. Our company has acquired their upgraded package, the monthly fee for which is about GBP 750 [over PKR 2.5 lacs]. Their rates are very high, but we are no longer worried about internet outages and disruption of business activities,” they said.

It merits a mention that Starlink has not yet been issued a license by the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA). While the usage of such a service prior to official approvals remains illegal, local IT companies are doing so with the involvement of third-parties abroad.

According to Minister of State for Information Technology and Telecommunication Shaza Fatima Khawaja, Starlink has already been registered with the Security Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP).

A license to operate, however, is yet to be issued by the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA). Earlier, Elon Musk had also confirmed that they were awaiting an approval from the government of Pakistan.

Starlink internet packages for Pakistan revealed

Starlink, the satellite internet service launched by SpaceX under the leadership of Elon Musk, is set to launch in Pakistan. In a tweet on X (Previously Twitter) on Sunday, Elon said, "We are waiting for approval from the government of Pakistan."

Starlink is a satellite internet constellation constructed by SpaceX to provide satellite internet access. The system aims to deliver high-speed broadband internet to locations where access has been unreliable, expensive, or completely unavailable. The network is composed of thousands of mass-produced small satellites in low Earth orbit (LEO), working in combination with ground transceivers.

Starlink has not officially launched in Pakistan; however, here are the possible prices for internet packages.

Starlink offers various packages tailored to different needs. These prices are estimated based on other regions, as Starlink has not officially launched in Pakistan.

Want to know about the price of Starlink in Pakistan?