SpaceX has been buying spectrum in the U.S. and has reportedly considered selling phone service directly to American consumers. Could Starlink become a fourth national carrier in Canada? Rogers doesn’t think so. On its third-quarter earnings call on October 23, CEO Tony Staffieri said SpaceX’s own public filings with Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED) show it intends “to work with wireless operators” here, iPhone in Canada reports.
Staffieri said Rogers is “proactively deepening” its satellite-to-phone partnership with Starlink and “intends to lead Canada.” He didn’t announce new features, prices or dates.
Why Starlink can’t just copy its U.S. playbook here
- Spectrum: the bands tied to SpaceX’s recent U.S. purchases are extremely limited or unavailable in Canada, where they’re largely used by the public sector.
- Ownership rules: Canada’s foreign ownership limits also apply to spectrum.
- Market size: a smaller population, concentrated in cities, makes a standalone national network a harder business case.
What Rogers offers today
Rogers Satellite connects phones to Starlink satellites for texting, text-to-911 and select apps where there’s no cell signal, with U.S. coverage through T-Mobile’s T-Satellite. Staffieri called it a “complementary evolving product.” On home internet, he said Starlink’s share is “very small” and mostly rural. Rogers also resells Starlink to small businesses.
The comments land a month after Prime Minister Mark Carney said Canada will “diversify away” from Starlink, as part of reducing reliance on U.S. technology.
Why it matters: For Canadians, satellite-to-phone service will most likely arrive as a feature of your existing plan, not as a new carrier competing on price. That’s good for coverage in remote areas and on highways. It does little for competition, and it ties Rogers more closely to the U.S. provider Ottawa says it wants to move away from.
