University of Kwazulu-Natal

Elon Musk S Starlink Set For Windfall Under Trump Broadband Changes

Bonisiwe Shabane
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elon musk s starlink set for windfall under trump broadband changes

In this 2021 file photo, a worker with the Mason County Public Utility District in Washington state installs a hanger onto fiber-optic cable as it comes off of a spool. Ted S. Warren/AP hide caption West Virginia Gov. Patrick Morrisey last week unveiled a shake-up to a federally subsidized broadband program that gained little notice. That came as no surprise.

It sounded like an unremarkable announcement about a government project receiving an extension. But below the surface, the news marked the first instance of a state taking action at the direction of the Trump administration to upend a multi-billion-dollar pool of money to potentially benefit White House... For the past four years, states including West Virginia have been working with the federal government to finalize plans to extend underground fiber-optic cables to the estimated 22 million Americans without at-home internet. But the Trump administration is overhauling the $42 billion federal grant program known as Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment Program to be "tech neutral," a nudge to encourage more satellite internet service. This comes despite telecommunications experts insisting that fiber is the fastest, more affordable way to connect underserved communities. Less than 24 hours after President Trump threatened to terminate Elon Musk's government contracts, his Commerce Department published a notice that could shift tens of billions of dollars in federal funding to Musk's Starlink...

Starlink is projected to receive as much as $20 billion in Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment Program money under the new rules -- up from the $4.1 billion it was slated to get previously,... "This is a huge gift to Starlink," Drew Garner, director of policy at the Benton Institute for Broadband and Society, told CNET. "To me, this looks like another instance of TACO Trump chickening out and handing over the money. He's letting his Secretary give Musk billions of dollars on the day Musk is calling for his impeachment." The BEAD program was signed into law as part of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act of 2021. It's the largest investment the government has ever made in expanding internet access -- a once-in-a-lifetime pool of money that was supposed to provide every American with an option for high-speed internet at their...

Critics like to point out that it's been over three years since the program was created, and still no homes have been connected by BEAD. However, it's largely on track with the timeline laid out in the original law. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick has repeatedly cited the need for faster and cheaper BEAD deployment, but industry observers were already telling me before the election that a Trump victory would shift billions of dollars... Starlink's Big Win in Texas's Rural Internet Expansion A shift in federal broadband funding rules under the Trump administration has significantly boosted Starlink's satellite internet service in Texas. Elon Musk's Starlink now stands poised to dominate the rural broadband market, utilizing satellite technology to provide high-speed, low-latency internet to inaccessible regions.

The move opens the door for a robust expansion in Texas, aligning with Starlink’s broader goals. Get the latest AI workflows to boost your productivity and business performance, delivered weekly by expert consultants. Enjoy step-by-step guides, weekly Q&A sessions, and full access to our AI workflow archive. Get the latest AI workflows to boost your productivity and business performance, delivered weekly by expert consultants. Enjoy step-by-step guides, weekly Q&A sessions, and full access to our AI workflow archive. Get the latest AI workflows to boost your productivity and business performance, delivered weekly by expert consultants.

Enjoy step-by-step guides, weekly Q&A sessions, and full access to our AI workflow archive. Trump admin decides fiber Internet won’t be prioritized in BEAD grant program. The Trump administration is eliminating a preference for fiber Internet in a $42.45 billion broadband deployment program, a change that is expected to reduce spending on the most advanced wired networks while directing more... One report suggests Starlink could obtain $10 billion to $20 billion under the new rules. Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick criticized the Biden administration’s handling of the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) program in a statement yesterday. Lutnick said that “because of the prior Administration’s woke mandates, favoritism towards certain technologies, and burdensome regulations, the program has not connected a single person to the Internet and is in dire need of...

The BEAD program was authorized by Congress in November 2021, and the US was finalizing plans to distribute funding before Trump’s inauguration. The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA), part of the Commerce Department, developed rules for the program in the Biden era and approved initial funding plans submitted by every state and territory. The program has been on hold since the change in administration, with Senator Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and other Republicans seeking rule changes. In addition to demanding an end to the fiber preference, Cruz wants to kill a requirement that ISPs receiving network-construction subsidies provide cheap broadband to people with low incomes. Cruz also criticized “unionized workforce and DEI labor requirements; climate change assessments; excessive per-location costs; and other central planning mandates.” An outgoing official at the US Commerce Department is alleging that the Trump administration could misuse a federal broadband program to enrich Elon Musk’s Starlink business over funding faster fiber installations.

On Friday, the outgoing director to the $42.5 billion Broadband Equity Access and Deployment (BEAD) program sent an email, blasting the Trump administration’s decision to potentially shift more of the funding to satellite internet... The problem is that much of the funding has been allocated to US states for fiber installations capable of delivering speeds of 1Gbps or more — which is faster than Starlink, a service that’s... “Stranding all or part of rural America with worse internet so that we can make the world’s richest man even richer is yet another in a long line of betrayals by Washington,” wrote Evan... “More people will get Starlink/Kuiper, and fewer people will get fiber connection,” he added, referring to Amazon’s Starlink rival, Project Kuiper, which has faced repeated delays. Residents of western North Carolina gather near a fire station last fall to access Wi-Fi service in the wake of Hurricane Helene. The region is among the areas meant to benefit from the BEAD program for rural broadband access.

(Photo by Melissa Sue Gerrits/Getty Images) The Trump administration on Friday released revised rules for a federal program meant to widely expand broadband access, stripping the Biden-era effort of many key requirements and making it easier for Elon Musk’s company... Under the revised guidelines, the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment Program, known as BEAD, will take a technology-neutral approach to expanding broadband access rather than focusing on fiber internet. The original program favored fiber because of its speed, reliability and ability to reach remote locations. The change opens the door for more internet providers to use BEAD grants for technologies including satellite internet service, which is provided by Elon Musk’s Starlink. Under the new rules, Starlink could receive $10 billion to $20 billion in BEAD money, up from $4.1 billion the company would have received under the original rules, according to The Wall Street Journal.

Groups applying for BEAD funding also will no longer be required to offer a low-cost service option for internet users in locations they are serving. Some states had proposed services as low as $30 a month. Elon Musk’s Starlink could receive up to $20 billion in government funding if the Commerce Department goes ahead with plans to rip up the rule book on rural broadband contracts, according to the Wall... Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick reportedly wants to modify the Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment (BEAD) Program, a Biden-era initiative that aims to provide $42.45 billion in funding to expand high-speed internet access across the... Lutnick, however, plans to make the program, which focuses on fiber-optic cables laid in the ground, “technology-neutral,” according to sources who spoke to the Journal. This would mean that satellite internet providers, like Elon Musk’s Starlink, could receive some of the kitty.

The company had actually lobbied the Commerce Department to modify the rules last year, only stopping when President Donald Trump took office, according to WSJ sources. Republicans have complained that the BEAD program has been rolled out too slowly, and focuses too heavily on cable infrastructure. Arielle Roth, Trump’s pick to head the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA), also complained about the program’s “woke social agenda.” Elon Musk may be getting another handout from the federal government. The Wall Street Journal reports that the tech mogul’s satellite internet company, Starlink, could soon make up to $20 billion thanks to a Commerce Department overhaul of a Biden-era program to expand broadband internet... Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick has told staff that he wants to make grants under the $42.5 billion Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment Program “technology neutral,” which would give states the ability to allocate more...

Musk and Starlink could draw much more funding under the new rules. Under the program’s existing restrictions, states can only fund alternatives to fiber, such as satellite, in places where laying fiber cables isn’t cost-effective or feasible. Starlink was expected to haul in around $4.1 billion under the existing rules but could rake in anywhere from $10 billion to $20 billion if Lutnick’s changes are accepted. Those changes could be announced this week, albeit without many details, according to unnamed sources cited by the Journal. Implementing the overhaul could take longer, as some states may decide to change the allocation of funding they’ve already received. But Musk could easily grease the wheels or complicate matters if he devotes any X posts to the issue.

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