Northern Ontario Supports SpaceX Starlink Internet as ‘Best Option’

For rural communities in Canada, internet access can be a major struggle.

The Federation of Northern Ontario (FONOM) thinks Tesla CEO Elon Musk’s Starlink satellite internet project may be the solution to their connectivity struggles, and they passed a new resolution in support of the technology to prove it. SpaceX’s Starlink project intends to place internet-bearing satellites into low orbit, which will allow internet access even to those living in a remote location.

While Starlink is still in its beta program, internal testing has demonstrated impressive speeds upwards of 100mbps. The project is set to open its beta to non-SpaceX employees later this year.

Danny Whalen, president of FONOM said, “We know today our citizens require greater connectivity than 50/10 megabits per second.” Whalen continued, “FONOM believes that the Starlink program is our best option.”

The resolution also provides a basic international telecommunications service license (BITS) to the Canadian Radio-Television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC).

Hey @elonmusk I'm moving into the rural sticks of northwestern ontario, canada. No utility based internet is available and mobile data is a joke here. It sure would be a thrill if i could beta test Starlink?

— John Quint (@JohnQueue174) September 18, 2020

On Twitter, users were generally excited for the passing of the resolution, many of which begged Musk to let them be a part of the SpaceX Starlink beta test. Canada’s rural communities struggle with affordable and reliable high-speed internet. SpaceX Starlink internet may just be the solution.

As the world grows ever closer to universal internet connectivity, Starlink will likely continue to gain traction until it is deployed publicly.