SpaceX has severed ties with several StarSat Africa customers in South Africa, alleging trademark and copyright infringements.
Despite Starlink not being officially supported in South Africa, its roaming service is still accessible, requiring users to register and have kits delivered to supporting countries.
StarSat Africa, an importer of Starlink kits, faced a 13-20% price reduction, leading SpaceX to deactivate 350-400 accounts for violating terms of service, unauthorized resale, and trademark infringement.
SpaceX rejected StarSat Africa’s application as an authorized reseller, prompting customer migrations.
Efforts are underway to reactivate locked accounts with a 24-hour support ticket turnaround.
Licensing requirements in South Africa has posed challenges for Starlink’s direct-to-customer model, with compliance issues, scarce licenses, potential costs, and delays.
Starlink’s reluctance to collaborate with licensed local ISPs may complicate national rollo
