- Starlink Nigeria has reduced its hardware prices by 21%.
- Following this reduction, Starlink’s hardware is now priced at N299,500, down from its previous rate of N378,000.
- As of the end of June, Starlink Nigeria had amassed a customer base of 6,756.
Starlink Nigeria has reduced its hardware prices by 21% in its efforts to capture a larger portion of the Nigerian Internet Service Provider (ISP) market.
Following this reduction, Starlink’s hardware is now priced at N299,500, down from its previous rate of N378,000. However, the monthly subscription fee of N38,000 has not changed.
The internet company led by Elon Musk, Starlink, has announced that it will provide a partial refund to Nigerian customers who recently purchased their hardware within the last 30 days, and this discount offer will be available until November 15th.
Despite having relatively higher costs in comparison to local ISPs, Starlink, which announced its arrival in Nigeria in January of this year, has generated significant interest among Nigerians who are enthusiastic about switching their service providers, Nairametrics reported.
Based on data from the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), Starlink has now become one of the prominent ISPs in Nigeria with a huge customer base.
In June, Starlink Nigeria had amassed a customer base of 6,756. Some local ISPs in Nigeria, despite having been in operation for several years, have fewer customers than that figure.
While Starlink officially announced its presence in Nigeria in January of this year, Nigerians had been placing pre-orders for its hardware since the previous year. Initially, the company quoted its prices in dollars at $600 for the hardware and $43 for the subscription, but it transitioned to pricing in naira upon its official announcement.
During that period, Starlink’s hardware and monthly subscription costs were set at N268,584 and N19,260, respectively. These prices were based on the official dollar exchange rate, which was approximately N450/$1 at that time.
As the exchange rate was unified and the Naira’s value declined, the prices of both hardware and subscriptions increased to N378,000 and N38,000, respectively.
Recently, Starlink announced a partnership with the e-commerce company Jumia Technologies AG to boost the sales of Starlink’s services and contribute to the expansion of broadband access across Africa.
Last week, Starlink satellite internet service was launched in Zambia, making it the sixth country in Africa to receive the high-speed, uncapped service.
However, its operation in Africa has not been all rosy as it is facing regulatory challenges on the continent, where only 40% of its over 1.3 billion population have access to the internet, the lowest rate in the world. The use of Starlink is prohibited in South Africa, Zimbabwe and Senegal.
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