The Government of the Northwest Territories (N.W.T.) is actively searching for a replacement to SpaceX’s Starlink satellite internet service, but residents and industry experts say that no viable alternative exist.
Political and trade tensions between Canada and the United States have made continued reliance on American technology complicated, with some Canadian jurisdictions now reconsidering their partnerships with Starlink. Ontario has gone as far as cancelling a $100 million contract to provide satellite internet in remote parts of the province.
After spending over $400,000 on Starlink services during the past year, N.W.T. Premier R.J. Simpson has indicated the territory is looking to follow suit.
So far, though, there is only alternative under consideration, and it is not based in Canada, and does not come close to matching Starlink in terms of speed and reliability. That one alternative is U.K.-based Eutelsat OneWeb. Like Starlink, OneWeb uses low-Earth orbit (LEO) satellites to provide internet access, but with a big difference—scale. Starlink operates over 6,000 satellites, while OneWeb has only about 600 in orbit, resulting in less consistent coverage and slower speeds.
Tom Zubko, president of Inuvik-based New North Networks, said his team tested OneWeb during internet outages caused by the 2023 wildfire season. “It was not spectacular,” Zubko said. “The connectivity wasn’t as good, and it was significantly more expensive. Certainly unsustainable.” (via CBC)
Currently, OneWeb service—offered through Northwestel—is available in eight N.W.T. communities that lack terrestrial internet. But many residents in these communities still choose to pay extra for Starlink. In Colville Lake, for instance, resident David Codzi said OneWeb’s capped data plans and sluggish speeds make it impractical, suggesting that politics could impact their lives by removing Starlink. “Before all this politics happened, it was a good thing,” Codzi said.
The situation is similar in Łútselk’e, where Lyle Fabian of KatloTech Communications described OneWeb service as “atrocious.”
Adding to the challenge, OneWeb doesn’t sell directly to consumers and lacks the portability that makes Starlink valuable for those traveling or spending time out on the land. Enterprise-level OneWeb systems are available, but they’re costly and targeted at institutions rather than individuals.
A spokesperson for the N.W.T. government confirmed the territory is “exploring the service” but admitted, “The [government] is not aware of other alternatives at this time.”
For now, politics aside, Starlink remains the only realistic option for many in the North—because when it comes to reliable internet in remote Canada, performance still matters most.
