Royal Caribbean Is First Cruise Liner To Explore Elon Musk’s Starlink Internet

Photo 125761052 © Pressfoto | Dreamstime.com

Will fast, actually tolerable internet speeds on cruise ships finally become a reality? Royal Caribbean Group is working with SpaceX’s Starlink network to bring coverage on board, according to a Federal Communications Commission (FCC) filing first noted by PC Mag. 

Starlink launched with a goal to extend high-speed broadband access into remote and underserved parts of the world. It certainly held to its promise when Russia invaded Ukraine, keeping Ukrainians connected when local infrastructure was damaged.

One major caveat: Starlink service on moving vehicles, including planes, hasn’t passed federal approvals yet. Until then, Elon Musk’s satellite internet network will continue assessing Royal Caribbean’s ships to determine the feasibility of its network on the vessels. The project is still in its “experimental phase,” a Royal Caribbean Group spokesperson tells USA Today.

Royal Caribbean Group—which owns Royal Caribbean International, Celebrity Cruises, and Silversea Cruises—calls this potential transition “a true next-generation solution” for its fleets. It’s therefore urging the FCC to green-light Starlink applications across ships, planes, trucks, and other forms of transportation.

With Starlink’s ability to reach low-coverage areas, a partnership with cruise liners sounds like the natural next move. Plus, as per PC Mag, Starlink has the bandwidth to propel existing Wi-Fi speeds on ships from 3–5 Mbps to 50–250 Mbps.

It seems great on paper, but it’s not perfect. As of May 24, “Starlink does work on vehicles in motion, including planes, but not yet reliably,” Musk tweeted.

For Royal Caribbean, a tie-in with Starlink could bring forth a different sort of stability for its internet service. Citing satellite services on the receiving end of “attrition, bankruptcies, and consolidation,” the cruise conglomerate now desires a service provider that can hold up on its own.

[via Insider and USA Today, cover photo 125761052 © Pressfoto | Dreamstime.com]