Globe Telecom Inc. is rolling out its Starlink Mobile service internationally for the first time, starting with Japan through a partnership with Tokyo-based telecommunications operator KDDI.
Their partnership will allow Globe subscribers to avail of the direct-to-device offering when traveling to Japan, while KDDI subscribers can access the same service when traveling to the Philippines.
To access the service in Japan, Globe subscribers would have to avail themselves of an applicable roaming offering that includes Starlink Mobile access.
GoRoam Japan starts at P400 for seven days, with 2 gigabytes (GB) of all-access data, 1 GB of satellite data and 50 satellite text messages to all networks.
Globe’s domestic Starlink Mobile service is available at P99 for 30 days and P299 for 90 days.
The initial international rollout comes just three months after Globe commercially launched the offering in the Philippines, in what it sees as a way to reach the remaining 4 percent of Filipinos still outside the coverage of terrestrial mobile networks.
‘Globe has always been at the forefront of connectivity innovation, and extending our Starlink journey into international access is the next step in that evolution,’ said Eric Tanbauco, head of Globe’s consumer mobile business.
Globe’s Starlink offering is available only on compatible LTE or 5G Android and Harmony devices.
Users must also have a clear line of sight to the sky to establish a connection, as the system links compatible phones directly to Starlink’s low-Earth orbit satellites, which essentially function as ‘cell towers in space.’
KDDI said it expects the partnership to further expand satellite-enabled roaming beyond areas covered by conventional mobile networks.