Starlink responds after India pricing appears online, says website not yet live

Starlink has recently addressed concerns following the premature appearance of its residential package pricing on its Indian website, which has not yet gone live. The company, led by Elon Musk, attributed the leak to a configuration error that unintentionally displayed test data. Lauren Dreyer, Vice President of Starlink Business Operations, emphasized that the pricing for services in India has not been finalized or publicly announced. In a statement on social media, she clarified, "The service pricing for customers in India has not yet been announced, and we are not taking orders from customers in India." Dreyer further explained that the glitch that exposed the pricing was quickly rectified, stating, "Those numbers do not reflect what the cost of Starlink service will be in India. We’re eager to connect the people of India with Starlink's high-speed internet, and our teams are focused on obtaining final government approvals to turn service (and the website) on.” The leaked information indicated a monthly subscription fee of ₹8,600 for the residential package along with a required hardware kit priced at ₹34,000. This pricing closely mirrors Starlink's global rates, which average around $120 per month in the U.S. In contrast, typical fiber broadband services in India range from ₹500 to ₹1,000 monthly, suggesting that Starlink would be positioned as a premium service in the region. In neighboring Bhutan and Bangladesh, Starlink's entry prices are considerably lower, at approximately ₹3,000 and ₹4,400 per month, respectively. During a recent discussion, Musk expressed optimism about Starlink's potential in India, highlighting the service's advantages in rural areas where traditional internet infrastructure is often lacking. He remarked, "In cities, you’ve got these cell towers that are only a kilometer apart. But cell towers tend to be inefficient in the countryside. So, Starlink is very complementary to the existing telecom companies."