In an effort to help rural citizens of Germany get better internet access, the government is planning to introduce subsidies for satellite internet services such as Starlink.
On Monday the Transport Ministry said the planned program would help citizens purchase the required hardware for the services, but not the ongoing monthly service costs.
“The monthly costs for using the internet connection will not be covered by the grant,” the ministry said (via Reuters).
According to a report by the publication Handelsblatt, the subsidy could be €500 ($736 CAD). That would cover the up front cost for the Starlink hardware, which currently sits at €499.
The program would be open to any wireless internet provider and not just Starlink.
SpaceX recently revealed it has more than 500,000 preorders for the Starlink satellite internet service around the world.
