SpaceX has landed a major customer for its new Maritime broadband service, which will offer cruise shippers an "excellent internet connection," according to Elon Musk.
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Royal Caribbean will deploy Starlink across its entire fleet to improve internet connectivity for guests and crew. Cruise ships have previously had to rely on expensive satellite internet services that rarely offer enough bandwidth to hold a Zoom meeting. Royal Caribbean promises that Starlink will change all that.
See also: SpaceX's Starlink Maritime: Satellite internet for yachts
Starlink will be deployed immediately across all Royal Caribbean International, Celebrity Cruises and Silversea Cruises ships, as well as all new ships for each brand. The company expects to complete the installation by the end of the first quarter of 2023.
Cruise industry profits have been hit by the Covid -19 pandemic , but major companies have stayed afloat thanks to bookings that this year returned to pre-pandemic levels.
“Our goal as a company is to deliver the best vacation experiences to our guests responsibly , and this new offering, which is the largest public deployment of Starlink high-speed internet in the travel industry to date, demonstrates our commitment to that goal,” said Jason Liberty, president and CEO of Royal Caribbean Group.
“This technology will enable more high-bandwidth activities, such as video streaming, as well as activities like video calling.”
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The Royal Caribbean deal is also a big win for SpaceX, which launched Starlink Maritime in July and recently lost $885 million in regional broadband funding from the Federal Communications Commission. SpaceX has launched more than 2,000 Starlink satellites.
Information source: zdnet.com
