Starlink, via its Twitter (or now rather X) account, just announced that it went live in Malaysia – its 60th country. 🇲🇾
In recent weeks, Starlink has been expanding to new markets at a rapid pace. Just in the last two weeks alone, Starlink was introduced in Kenya, Guatemala, and Cyprus.
And for the year 2023, Starlink has already gone live in 15 different countries. Malaysia, after the Philippines earlier this year, is the second country in Southeast Asia where Starlink became available.
The Residential package, Starlink’s most commonly adopted plan, is priced at MYR 220 (~ US$ 48) per month, which is slightly above average prices in Europe.
Additionally, subscribers pay a one-time hardware fee of MYR 2,300 (~ US$ 503), plus shipment and handling fees of MYR 100 (~ US$22).
Make sure to check our global price list for an updated version of all the countries Starlink is available in as well as how much it charges in each of those locations.
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim held a teleconference meeting with SpaceX founder Elon Musk where the two also discussed the opening of Tesla’s Malaysia office.
Ibrahim himself also caught some fire for purchasing 40 Starlink kits, with the aim of installing them across universities nationwide.
Just last week, Malaysia had finally issued a license to Starlink. Fahmi Fadzil, the country’s Minister of Communications and Digital, wrote on Facebook that Starlink would begin by providing its services to schools and higher education institutions.
He added that around 3 percent of the country’s 33.5 million strong population faces issues with getting access to proper internet.
The tourism sector, in particular, should benefit from the launch of Starlink. Islands like Pangkor Laut or Perhentian Islands, which house thousands of tourists each year, will likely also be early adopters.
Interestingly, Starlink is not subject to the 49 percent ownership threshold imposed on foreign companies. Instead, SpaceX owns 100 percent of its business in Malaysia.
With that said, it remains to be seen how much of a dent Starlink will make in the country given its rather sophisticated internet infrastructure.
“If you look at the monthly cost alone, Starlink is more expensive than current fibre broadband and wireless 5G plans in the market,” said local Soya Cincau in response to the Starlink launch.
As of today, over 97% of all Malaysians have access to 4G coverage while around 7.74 million households can enjoy fibre broadband.
Starlink is better option than previous local company name connectme. Starlink have no contract, no installation fees, no data cap. Portable and easy to setup.
Connectme only offer 30Mbps download 😂😂
Btw first in Malaysia offer rental starlink. https://www.sewastarlink.com