Starlink is adding more and more clients and satellites . Internet service from space will be available in Spain in the second half of this year, allowing access to the Internet from remote areas where not even 4G is available. Now, SpaceX has reached an agreement with Google to use its cloud services.
This deal is key for SpaceX. Starlink satellites can communicate with each other, and there are many base stations on Earth , but having the support of a large network infrastructure like the one Google has allows to guarantee a much more stable and faster service. Therefore, both parties have reached an agreement whereby Starlink’s Earth stations will be located next to or on the rooftops of Google’s data centers, where they will use their cloud processing resources and their network resources.
Google and Starlink will benefit each other
The agreement will also be beneficial for Google, which will be able to use Starlink to offer its services in areas where it could not until now, combining its cloud with a universal and secure connection . In addition, Google thus achieves an agreement in a sector where its competitors had taken the lead, since Amazon is working with Kuiper to have its own satellite network, and Microsoft had reached an agreement with SES and with Starlink itself.
Google currently relies heavily on advertising, so diversifying your offering is very important. Your cloud service accessible from anywhere in the world can be a key element for the future. The cloud represents 7% of its revenues, growing 46% in the first quarter of 2021 compared to the same period of the previous year.
Google, in addition to having invested money in its servers, also has a private fiber optic network that connects its data centers . This has been a key element for the agreement, this being what interests SpaceX most to be able to transfer the data to the Internet from the satellites as soon as possible. Starlink customers will also be able to deploy services on the Google network with higher speed and lower latency, including, for example, playing Stadia through Starlink.
Google will open a data center in Spain
The duration of the agreement, according to a source close to it, is seven years . They will first begin to deploy the ground stations in the United States, but they also hope to begin to expand internationally and be present in the data centers that Google has around the world. Currently Google does not have one in Spain , but they are working to open one in Madrid in collaboration with Telefónica .
For now, Starlink continues to expand its network and already has 1,558 active satellites in orbit. The company revealed last week that more than 500,000 people have already signed up for the service or made a deposit to receive the kit and service as soon as it is available in their area. Its price is 499 euros for the kit, with 60 euros of shipping costs and 99 euros of monthly fee. The current maximum speed is around 200 Mbps, with a latency of less than 40 ms.
