Starlink’s market share in Kenya more than doubles in 3 months

Starlink kits on sale at Geek Tech shop in Nairobi on November 11, 2024.

Photo credit: File | Nation Media Group

US billionaire Elon Musk’s satellite internet firm Starlink has more than doubled its market share in Kenya in just three months, controlling a 1.1 percent stake as at the end of September 2024 – up from 0.5 percent at the end of June the same year.

Fresh disclosures from the Communications Authority of Kenya (CA) indicate that the subscriber base growth rate for the multinational has dramatically intensified, adding 8,723 new users in the period under review, a pace that dwarfs the 8,063 subscribers gained in the full year to June.

The increased growth has seen Starlink move up three places in the market dominance rankings in the country, overtaking Liquid Telecommunications Kenya and Vijiji Connect Limited to tie with Dimension Data Solutions East Africa Limited in seventh place, up from position 10 in June.

During the review period, total satellite internet subscriptions in Kenya more than doubled, growing by 104.7 percent to hit 17,042 from 8,324 in June, largely driven by the aggressive expansion of Starlink’s market base.

“Satellite internet subscriptions recorded a significant increase of 104.7 percent during the reference period attributed to a customer acquisition campaign run by Starlink Internet Services Kenya that introduced an option to rent satellite equipment at a reduced cost,” the CA wrote in its latest issue of the quarterly industry review.

Between June and September, the CA notes, Kenya’s utilised satellite internet capacity – which reflects the total internet access speed the technology can provide per second – increased rapidly to 2,124.438 gigabits per second (Gbps), up from 840.448 Gbps in the preceding quarter, more than doubling on the back of Starlink services uptake in the country.

“Utilised satellite internet capacity grew significantly by 152.8 percent to reach 2,124.438 Gbps. This growth corresponds to the growth in satellite subscriptions following some customer acquisition initiatives by Starlink Internet Services Kenya,” CA said.

Safaricom maintained its firm grip on the fixed internet market, growing marginally to control a market share of 36.6 percent from 36.4 percent in June, followed by Jamii Telecommunications Limited (JTL) whose share grew to 24.4 percent from 24 percent in June.

Wananchi Group-owned Zuku, on the other hand, saw its market share shrink to 16.8 percent during the quarter from 17.5 percent in June.

“Safaricom Plc recorded the highest market share in fixed data subscriptions, followed by Jamii Telecommunications Ltd, Wananchi Group (Kenya) Ltd, and Poa Internet Kenya Ltd, with market shares of 36.6, 24.4, 16.8 and 12.6 percent, respectively,” noted the regulator.

An outgrowth of Musk’s space technology firm SpaceX, Starlink launched its services in Kenya in late July 2023, setting the stage for what analysts at the time termed ‘a consequential industry disruption’ that would see the battle for the fast-growing market intensify among the top internet service providers.

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