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by paulsutter 2133 days ago
Bizarre claim. In what way would Starlink have any less access to AWS? Its... the internet

> “If Kuiper succeeds, Amazon can not only offer global satellite broadband access—it can include that access as part of its Amazon Web Services (AWS), which already offers resources for cloud computing, machine learning, data analytics, and more”
3 comments
JumpCrisscross 2133 days ago
> In what way would Starlink have any less access to AWS?

It’s a distribution advantage.

To sign up a new customer, Starlink has to...sign up a new customer. Contracts, configuration, payment details, integration. Kuiper, on the other hand, has to get them to click a button on a dashboard.

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apendleton 2133 days ago
But in either case you need to acquire and mount a physical doodad to your house (or vehicle or office or whatever), right? Entering a credit card number again seems comparatively inconsequential in either case.
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count 2132 days ago
AWS Downlink between regions for higher cost but lower latency global xfer? It might not all be cloud->office, but maybe intra-cloud.
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JumpCrisscross 2132 days ago
> Entering a credit card number again seems comparatively inconsequential in either case

For an individual, probably. For an enterprise, skipping new vendor procurement is a material advantage. I don't think it's a decisive one. But it's an advantage nonetheless.

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almost_usual 2133 days ago
Kuiper also needs to figure out how to actually launch to space.

I think Starlink can figure out their onboarding customer experience faster than that happens..

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verdverm 2132 days ago
Name, email, address. The form is on their site and they had to ask the FCC for 5x base station licenses after they put this up. I doubt they have to figure out much.
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verdverm 2132 days ago
Starlink has probably 1M+ customers lined up. Their base station will be plug-n-play, no technicians needed. Plug in, point at sky, order independent.
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stirbot 2133 days ago
Likely related to their satellite ground station as-a-service: https://aws.amazon.com/ground-station/
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wmf 2133 days ago
For example, imagine if Kuiper terminals could be configured to not use the Internet but to be inside a VPC.
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