Starlink has been granted a “provisional temporary permit” to operate in Tonga, MEIDECC announced today, 19 July.
This was in response to a “significant amount” of public concern ** after the Tonga government instructed Starlink to cease its services in Tonga, stated MEIDECC* CEO Sione 'Aka'oula.
A condition of the permit is that Starlink Pacific Islands LLC is required to facilitate local payment methods for businesses in Tonga and to provide details of the terminals used in Tonga.
“The issuance of this permit aims to address public concerns, while ensuring that operations are conducted in accordance with regulatory requirements while the application for a full license is finalising,” the CEO stated this afternoon.
The Tonga public will welcome the access to Starlink's satellite internet service, during the current disruption in inter-island communications. The domestic submarine fibre optic cable to Vava’u and Ha’apai Islands was cut, soon after an earthquake on 29 June.
Tongans, especially in the outer islands, are seeking to use the Starlink global satellite network service, mostly via roaming subscriptions registered in other countries, as a lifeline during ongoing cable outage.
In response to the increasing numbers moving to Starlink, the government on 9 July instructed Starlink to cease its services in Tonga, after their regulator asserted that the Starlink terminals were illegal and had to be stopped.
The Prime Minister said the loss of communications was an “inconvenience” and told those affected by the cable outage “the law cannot be put aside just because you have slow internet.”
Today MEIDECC, in a change of heart, stated “the temporary permit issued to Starlink includes several conditions aimed at ensuring compliance with government regulations and addressing a significant amount of concerns raised by the public.
Under the conditions, Starlink must meet “regulated tax obligations” in Tonga. “Starlink is permitted to sell directly to the public while also considering a reseller model in collaboration with all of the existing local operators,” stated MEIDECC.
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*MEIDECC, Ministry of Meteorology, Energy, Information, Disaster Management, Environment, Climate Change, Communications, and CERT.
**Matangi Tonga is quoting from the MEIDECC statement published on the Ministry facebook page and retrieved on 2024-07-19 at 17.01.54. MEIDECC later changed their statement on 20 July.
