SpaceX was originally planning on ending their unlimited data usage policy with a new data cap which was supposed to be implemented in December 2022. That deadline was later pushed back to February 2023, and with one day left before that date arrives, SpaceX has delayed implementing their new policy for a second time.
According to the Starlink Fair Use Policy support page, the 1TB data cap will now be implemented “no earlier than April 2023,” giving users at least another two months of unlimited data usage. (via Reddit)
As before, the Fair Use Policy will apply to both residential and Business/Maritime customers in Canada and the US. This may seem a little unfair for the Business and Maritime customers as they pay a significantly higher monthly subscription fee to use the service.
The 1TB cap is calculated on a monthly basis and is not a hard cap where the service will be shut off once the limit is exceeded. Instead data speeds will be throttled once data usage exceeds 1TB. In addition, data usage during the off-peak hours between 11 pm and 7 am will not count towards the subscriber’s monthly total.
The addition of the Fair Use Policy comes at a time when Starlink internet speeds are dropping in Canada and the US due to increased congestion on the network. According to recent speeds tests conducted by Ookla Starlink speeds in Canada dropped to 65.8 Mpbs while in the US they fell to 53 Mpbs. Even with the lower speeds however Starlink still far exceeds competing satellite internet providers.
