Elon Musk's 'Free' Starlink for Hurricane Helene Victims Will Cost at Least $400
Elon Musk's 'Free' Starlink for Hurricane Helene Victims Will Cost at Least $400
Upon inspection, the offer of a free month of Starlink service seems to be the type of deal you might give to any new customer.
As Elon Musk likes to do whenever disaster hits somewhere in the world, Hurricane Helene was another opportunity to show off his generosity and make himself part of the news. This time, Musk made headlines with a promise that SpaceX Starlink would be free for 30 days to help in places where fiber and cellular infrastructure might have been knocked offline. More than 200 people have been identified as dead in the disaster.
But the catch is that it’s really not free at all. It really looks like not much more than a glorified new-customer promotion.
For one, anyone interested in taking up the offer still has to pay approximately $400 for the dish itself (including shipping and tax) and they’re getting automatically rolled into a $120 per-month contract when the free month ends.
I love this
Does anybody want a peanut?
Sounds about right. Rich people don’t get rich by giving away hand outs. They get rich by being assholes.
(including shipping and tax)
And I'm sure UPS will get your free $400 internet to you just as soon as services are restored and you won't need it.
Fucking hell - Verizon, Sprint and AT&T also, apparently have free Helene deals on offer! And Comcast (or whatever the hell they rebranded too) has six months and their nipple flaps at the ready!
Comcast (or whatever the hell they rebranded too)
Xfinity, although I prefer my head canon on which they rebranded to Crapcast
Corncast
He's in dire need of an aneurysm.
Melon Husk went from "I MUST be the one to save the world" to "pay up if you want to be saved".
Melon Husk
Hahahahhaaa.
I am very proud of that name.
When your emergency disaster relief comes with a $400 price tag, you've experienced
⚫Dark MAGA⚫
Now it makes me think that he was mad. He didn't get to build the sub and save those kids because he was going to charge them to get in... Or make them sign away their rights or something.
You know if the fucker literally just shipped a couple of these to like local government officials and asked them to be installed in libraries or whatever and then gave free internet with the idea that it would be shared access.
He could probably get all the good will, government officials might buy in for emergency connection access and get more money and people would have all that warm fuzzy feelings of remembering when they joined together and had community and internet thanks to this horse bartering fucker.
But no, he had to want some extra cash he doesn't need.
I don't get the wealthy.Elon, it's a great gesture, I'm sure those poor people will be delighted to at least be able to communicate freely.
It's nothing, I... Hold on, did you say poor? How about we changed the plan a bit?
Each time you go outside and look at the sky remember that at last 3 or 4 Elon Musk private company satellites are looking at you. Everywhere you go at any given time.
"The storm provides." -Thunderclap
Is that the name of the bird from "the good dinosaur"? Idk why that movie was a flop was a great movie.
Yes.
I think it hit people a little too hard, but it’s one of my favorite kid movies.
I'm Glad the man trying to Price Gauge literal DYING People is Poised to have a GOVERNMENT OVERSIGHT ROLE in Trump's Administration! I'm SURE He will Protect the Middle Class he's currently Price Gauging during a LIFE ENDING HURRICANE!
Is any other company doing literally anything? Hughesnet? Viasat?
I love to hate on Musk but this might be a stretch.
Doing nothing would be better than trying to scam victims into a $120/mth subscription.
The point isn't that musk is the only one doing anything, the point is musk is one of the people trying to sneakily profit off the disaster.
Starlink isn't "doing literally anything" either. Giving victims a coupon code that requires them to commit to paying for a service they never wanted isn't helping.
Go fuck yourself. Muskrat doesn't need his boots polished.
There isn't anything in the world he needs more. Every second of every day.
Yes there's a lot of other companies doing. Literally anything stupid question idiot
Wow, he's such a hero. /s
So free like starlink instead of free like beer
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Company offers free service in natural disaster areas.
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Internet villifies company for offering free service but not giving away $400 in free hardware to every person as well.
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Internet wonders why most companies don't do anything.
Free stuff!
Well, not free, $400.
Why are you not grateful?
You know those free streaming service trials where you hand them your credit card info, and they give 30 days to forget to cancel it? It's like that, but with an essential communications service instead of entertainment, 800% the price, advertised to disadvantaged/temporarily-impoverished families, and asking for 5 months worth of commitments in an upfront hardware cost.
So, yeah—excuse me for thinking Elon Musk is a shitbag profiting off of others' misfortune while cosplaying as a philanthropist. You know what would be a quarter the price and likely achieve the same thing? Waiting a week and paying AT&T $90 for 100 GB of prepaid data and using my phone as a hotspot.
Do you think any of the people in need of free internet right now just had that $400 hardware hanging around already? Otherwise I don't think the 'free' part matters much.
No, but expecting a company to provide $400 in free equipment is also ridiculous. They're offering free service, which is what they said they were, they never claimed anything more.
But the anti-Musk circlejerk doesn't care about anything other than complaining about anything related to him, so this response is 100% expected.
If they were providing free hardware as well you all would just complain about something else instead.
1a. Company quietly signs you up for a recurring 120 dollar monthly fee when you are too otherwise distracted to notice.
Ah, a man-made climate change disaster. Another perfect opportunity for me, the wealthiest person and major contributor to emissions, to advertise. Free* internet, everyone!
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This has now been extended until end of year with a map of the areas covered
that thumbnail pic makes it look like musk is wearing a nazi-esque (Hugo Boss?) uniform, and it's apt
I get it.
The actual offer is: "Starlink users will get free internet" but it's been put forward as: "everyone gets free Starlink"
It's the equivalent of corporations changing their Facebook profile picture to a rainbow. It basically costs then nothing, especially if affected areas have no electricity.