Elon Musk’s Starlink loses out to Amazon in supplying satellite broadband for Australia’s NBN Co.

Government-owned NBN Co has chosen Amazon’s Project Kuiper’s Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellite technology for high-speed, wholesale fixed broadband to customers in sections of regional, rural and remote Australia.

The decision sidelines Elon Musk’s Starlink, which launched in Australia in 2021, and has around 200,000 local customers, and was also pitching for the NBN contract.

Amazon’s Project Kuiper will kick off locally in mid-2026 and ultimately replace NBN Co’s two geostationary Sky Muster satellites, with the capacity to service more than 300,000 premises currently on the NBN satellite internet.

While Project Kuiper kicked off five years behind Starlink, only launching its first satellites in April, it plans to have 3,200, 500km above Earth, in a project worth A$15 billion. 78 Kuiper satellites are now in orbit, after three launches in three months.

The cost of NBN Co’s Amazon deal was not disclosed.

NBN Co CEO Ellie Sweeney said Kuiper’s low-latency, high-bandwidth satellite network will provide significant improvements to the quality and reliability of remote internet service

“Transitioning from two geostationary satellites to a constellation of Low Earth Orbit satellites will help to ensure the nbn network is future-ready and delivers the best possible broadband experience to customers living and working in parts of regional, rural and remote Australia,” she said.

“We plan to bring faster, lower latency broadband to Australians living and working in regional, rural and remote areas, enabling their ongoing participation in the economy for work, study, telehealth, streaming entertainment and connecting with family and friends.”

NBN Co is planning consultation with RSPs, regional communities and stakeholders around what speed tiers are offered, wholesale pricing and upgrades.

Starlink costs either A$99 or $139 a month, plus a $275 receiver.

NBN Co’s two Sky Muster satellites are expected to remain viable and operational until around 2032, so the company is exploring options on their future once customers are moved across to the Amazon service.

The National Broadband Network is wholly owned by the Australian government represented by two shareholders – the finance minister and minister for communications, cyber safety and the arts.