The southern United States was hit hard at the end of September and start of October with back-to-back hurricanes, Helene and Milton, causing chaos — with Florida particularly affected.
For residents impacted by the severe winds, rain, and flooding these extreme weather events brought, Elon Musk's Starlink satellite internet service offered free access to the technology for 30 days, allowing them to use vital online services even if they were without power or displaced from their homes.
Starlink terminals will now work automatically without need for payment in the areas affected by Hurricane Helene https://t.co/Nu8MbPWIjl
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) October 2, 2024
However, what Musk didn't explain was that users would still need to shell out nearly $400 for the needed Starlink hardware to use the service, as The Register disclosed, along with a video showing proof. That's not even to mention the difficulties of getting the dish in the first place, with postal and shipping services reduced and many people still unable to return home to collect a delivery.
The Register also detailed that those signing up for the free service would then be moved to a $120-a-month plan at the conclusion of the 30-day offer. Existing Starlink customers looking to avoid their usual payments while they recover from the hurricanes will need to jump through a few hoops, with no guarantee when the fee will be waived.
One resident of Boone, North Carolina — an area that sustained significant damage as a result of Hurricane Helene — told The Register the offer was "a crafty bait and switch ... meant to take advantage of people instead of helping them."
"There may be isolated scenarios when what [Musk] is offering will be a service," Kinney Baughman, a philosophy professor, told the publication. "But we're talking about cases where someone's way up a holler, doesn't have access to cell service, and where the flooding has broken their fiber. You're looking at months before you get service. In that case you might want to think about [Starlink]."
Musk's post on his X platform (formerly known as Twitter) offering the complimentary service had been seen by close to 40 million people as of Oct. 14. And to be sure, no person or business is obligated to provide discounts or free services in the face of an emergency, but transparency around what is actually being offered in such moments is important. Even with no discount, the Starlink service may be a valuable solution for many affected by one or both of the recent hurricanes.
Still, that's a whole lot of eyes that read a seemingly generous offer, and yet the majority will perhaps not quite understand the whole story. Starlink's intentions may have been pure, but one could easily see how the one-month-free offer could be viewed as an opportunity to add new subscribers rather than an act of charity — comparable to the various freebies offered by most internet companies around the country at any given time, since the offer is not being made with no strings attached.
The 53-year-old's environmental credentials are conflicting. As CEO of the electric vehicle brand Tesla, he has no doubt helped to take a number of polluting, dirty fuel-powered vehicles off of roads the world over. EVs require additional energy to mine and manufacture their batteries, but Reuters has shown a Tesla Model 3 only needs to be driven about 15,000 miles before it makes up for that and starts providing massive reductions in carbon pollution over a Toyota Corolla.
On the flip side, he is also founder and CEO of SpaceX, a company that designs and launches spacecraft. While one can argue that space exploration is a noble field that could lead to valuable resources, opportunities, and advancements in science, SpaceX is nonetheless responsible for significant environmental harm — from the heat-trapping emissions its rockets leave behind to the company's release of pollutants into Texas water sources, as NBC News detailed.
He's also pledged his support in the run-up to the U.S. presidential election to former president Donald Trump, a candidate who — wider politics aside — has frequently gone on record showing support for dirty energy industries and skepticism about the transition to greener sources of energy, even at times calling climate change a "hoax" before at one point agreeing humans do play a role in it. And while Musk may have other reasons for this support, the fact remains he's backing a candidate whose prior administration rolled back over 100 environmental regulations.
For Musk's sake, perhaps using his influence to encourage both parties to make further investments in green technologies — and maybe reform some of SpaceX's practices to reduce pollution — will help the people of hurricane-prone areas more than his "free" Starlink offer.
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