The head of the Commerce Department’s ambitious plan to expand fiber internet access across rural America warned on Sunday that opening the door to SpaceX’s Starlink would leave rural Americans worse off. Evan Feinman, who directed the program for the last three years, wrote in a departing email to staff that Starlink is “inferior” to alternatives, “delivering slower speeds at higher costs to the household paying the bill.”
Elon Musk, along with Republications, has vociferously attacked the rural broadband program launched under President Biden, called the Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment Program (BEAD). Three years after launch, no internet expansion projects have begun with the program’s $42.5 billion in funding, though three states were awaiting final approvals just as President Trump took office. Musk has regularly used X to lambast the program, of course, while pushing his own Starlink service.
Howard Lutnick, the new Commerce Secretary, has said the agency would review the program and remove burdensome requirements that have slowed down deployment as well as, crucially, any preference for fiber.
“Shovels could already be in the ground in three states, and they could be in the ground in half the country by the summer without the proposed changes to project selection,” Feinman wrote in his email, adding these states should be allowed to move forward with their plans while program changes remain in flux. Internet access, being just about as important as other basic necessities, is considered by many a utility today, but internet providers have not had much incentive to expand into rural areas that would be less profitable. BEAD was meant to address this with subsidies and incentives.
Starlink is fast to deploy to households, as it only requires customers to order a satellite dish from SpaceX, with installation completed in minutes. Broadband fiber, conversely, is labor-intensive and costly to deploy as it requires physically laying cable on power lines and into people’s homes. Starlink can offer some impressive speeds in the range of hundreds of megabits, but typically not the 1 Gbps (1,000 megabits) or more offered by fiber optic, and latency is an issue given the limitations of sending signals to and from space. SpaceX may not need to lay cable, but must continuously launch new satellites into space as the old ones reach end-of-life, and the company is limited by regulators in how many it can place in orbit.
Starlink is also generally more expensive than broadband fiber. The satellite dish itself costs $349 (outside of promotional periods), with service typically going for $120 per month. Feinman argues that while fiber might be more expensive to deploy upfront, households will be left with faster and more affordable internet service for years to come.
Elon Musk himself said from the early days that Starlink would never replace fiber broadband for those who already have it, as the service inherently has limitations that ground-based infrastructure does not. The service is a good option for remote areas without access to fiber, and SpaceX has partnered with cruise and airline operators to offer internet in moving vehicles. Starlink is good if it is the only option. If the government supports the development of broadband in rural areas, however, it would make Starlink a harder sell. By potentially eliminating the program’s preference for fiber, states might be pushed to adopt Starlink for its lower roll-out cost.
“Reach out to your congressional delegation and reach out to the Trump Administration and tell them to strip out the needless requirements, but not to strip away from states the flexibility to get the best connections for their people,” Feinman wrote.
Musk has claimed that he has not used his newfound influence in Washington for financial gain or self-dealing. Tesla sales might be falling precipitously due to his divisive brand, but President Trump recently ran a promotion for Tesla on the White House lawn. And at SpaceX, deals to replace other internet providers in government agencies seem to be moving apace. The FAA is reportedly looking to cancel a $2.4 billion contract with Verizon in favor of Starlink.
Unfortunately for those in rural America, it looks like they may soon be forced to pay more for less because Musk has been able to use X as his megaphone to push his agenda and intimidate any Republicans who do not go his way.
