REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JAKARTA -- Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs and Investment Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan revealed that Starlink, a satellite-based internet service, will be launched in the next two weeks or mid-May 2024.

"Officially, we will launch Starlink in two weeks from now," said Luhut at the "Jakarta Future Forum: Blue Horizons, Green Growth" in Jakarta, on Friday (May 5, 2024). 

Luhut said that the launch of Starlink had a good impact on Indonesia because many blind spots in Indonesia need internet access. He added that currently Indonesia and Starlink have signed the agreement and license required to operate satellite-based internet services in Indonesia.

"I spoke with Elon (Elon Musk, owner of Starlink) three days ago. We will do something, but we haven't officially announced it yet. We will announce it in Bali as soon as possible," said Luhut.

Previously, the Minister of Communication and Information (Menkominfo) Budi Arie Setiadi said that the satellite-based internet service provider, Starlink, would not damage the ecosystem of local internet service providers (PJI) which had already been operating in Indonesia. Budi Arie said that in the future Starlink's service coverage will reach more areas that have previously had geographical challenges and have not been touched by local PJI because the technology is satellite-based, namely the low Earth orbit (LEO) satellite.

The current Starlink licensing status has met the operational feasibility test (ULO). This means that the company owned by businessman Elon Musk already has a permit as a telecommunications provider in Indonesia.

Budi Arie said that in the future Starlink has plans to test its network in the Indonesian capital (IKN) in mid-May 2024. However, overall Budi Arie confirmed that Starlink will be fully operational in Indonesia in 2024.

"It will be fully operational this year. On the one hand, we want to increase internet speed, on the other hand, we also pay attention to the issue of equity. Because many areas in the far corners of Indonesia still have difficulty accessing the internet," said Budi Arie.

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