Government: No need to ‘geo-fence’ Starlink
THE Fiji Government has ruled out the need to call for “geofencing” or “geo-locking” satellite services such as Low Earth Orbit broadband Internet provider Starlink, saying a time will come when government control will not be possible.
Concerns are being raised in some quarters on the availability of Starlink services in countries in the Pacific where the company is not licensed, yet individuals are using the services through kits purchased by their relatives from Australia and New Zealand.
“The thing with technology nowadays is it will go to a stage where you can’t really – at the moment, we can still regulate Starlink – but ultimately there’ll come a time when people can just decide to hook into a satellite without any control from government,” said Minister for Trade and Communications Manoa Kamikamica.
“That’s the emerging technology that’s coming.”
There are mixed reactions to Starlink’s entry into the Pacific, with some calling for governments in the region to pressure SpaceX, owner of Starlink, to enable geo-locking on its satellites to limit its availability only to countries in which it is licensed to operate.
Last week, Samoa’s Office of the Regulator ordered the shutdown of Starlink services there, alleging its unauthorised use in the country.
Starlink has so far been given the green light to commercially operate in Fiji, Papua New Guinea and a temporary license in Cook Islands.
Pacific blockchain specialist and former Tonga Cable Ltd CEO Edwin Liava’a, in an earlier interview with said geofencing would not matter very much in the Pacific, considering the region’s “scattered islands” context.
“Especially when we are seafarers and we will consider having a Starlink on board our vessels.
“Why don’t we just make life simple and easy for our fellow Pacific Islanders instead of bogging everyone down with dogmatic policy and regulations,” Mr Liava’a said.
“We should also be mindful that enforcement of geo-fencing can be quite challenging. Governments would likely need to compel providers to implement robust geo-fencing through regulation and audits. Circumvention like using VPNs could also bypass geo-fences and it will cost money, which eventually will end up being charged to the consumer at the end of the day.”
For Fiji, Starlink is a lifeline for the unconnected.
“We have to be bold enough to accept competition because at the end of the day, the consumers have to benefit from the technology as well,” Mr Kamikamica said.
“So it’s a fine balance from the government.
“At the moment, we feel that Starlink has a role to play in Fiji and ATH is a mega operator in Fiji. They control about 80 per cent of the market so competition is good. It’ll make everybody fine tune their services. If they’re complacent, it’s an opportunity to make things better so the consumer benefits.”
Mr Kamikamica said the company’s licensing in November last year requested that it had a presence in Fiji, meaning it will open an office here, which so far has not happened.