Starlink has suspended new subscriptions to its internet services in Nairobi and surrounding areas following a network overload.
This comes after a number of users in the Nairobi metropolitan area complained of the company failing to provide residential, business, and ROAM service plans.
In response, the tech company, founded by the world’s richest human Elon Musk, explained that it was overwhelmed with users and their bandwidth and could not support any additional customers.
“Nairobi and neighbouring areas are currently at network capacity. This means that too many users are trying to access the Starlink service within Nairobi isn’t enough bandwidth to support additional residential or roaming customers at this time. No roaming plans are available in Kenya at this time. Starlink is working to restore service in the disrupted areas and a notification will be sent once the residential plan is back.’’
Other affected areas include Thika, Kajiado, Kiambu, parts of Murang’a, Naivasha, Ngong, Machakos and sections of Narok.
The company moreover indicated that the affordable packages were out of stock and only those charging above Ksh 130,000 per month were available.
In July 2023 Starlink entered into the Kenyan market with a promise of internet connection at low prices, a move that faced backlash in the market.
As of August 2024, the package for residential homes in Kenya for unlimited high-speed, low-latency internet data was Ksh6,500 per month.
The roaming package goes for Ksh14,000 per month and its features include unlimited mobile data inland, portability, and pause Service.
