The Ministry of Science, Information Technology and Communications (MSIT) and the Korean Government plan to issue regulations on the use of Starlink's local frequency this weekend, paving the way for the company's approval in March 2025.
Thus, Korean people can use Starlink's service as soon as possible in April 2025, after the Ministry of Justice and the Korean Government Policy Coordination Office complete the necessary steps to officially approve this enterprise.
SpaceX established a subsidiary in Korea called Starlink Korea LLC to deploy Starlink services in this country in 2023. Starlink provides high-speed, low-latency internet services to users around the world through satellites in low-altitude Earth orbit.
Under Korean law, foreign companies must sign a supply agreement with a local telecommunications operator to introduce their media network services in the "land of kimchi". However, according to other sources, the US space company has not yet informed MSIT about the detailed timeline for launching the service.
Industry officials said that the implementation of Starlink services in Korea is expected to have a limited impact on local mobile network operators' core wireless communication services for people, due to high costs and relatively slow internet speed. Therefore, Starlink plans to focus on providing services to aircraft and ships where communication services are limited.
In addition, industry officials added that Strarlink is expected to operate to penetrate South Korea's emerging 6th generation network market.
