SkyCommons Observatory

Prototype

SkyCommons Observatory | Space belongs to everyone

Who controls satellite internet?

We’re tracking who profits from connectivity in space and who gets left behind.

A few companies control everything. One dominates.

Around the world, governments are striking deals with satellite internet providers with little to no oversight. Mostly, it’s with Starlink.

Research

Mapping power, exposing risks

We did a baseline study of how low-Earth orbit (LEO) satellite internet was rolled out in six countries and scored them on key public-interest principles, including governance and accountability.

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Brazil

Americas

High

Executive Lobbying and the Quest for Autonomy. Brazil is Starlink's second-largest global market, with 250,000 active users and 85% annual growth in 2025. Despite strong urban penetration, only 22% of Brazilians meet 'meaningful connectivity' standards.

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Fiji

Pacific

High

Connectivity as a Disaster Resilience Lifeline. Fiji, an archipelago of 332 islands, views LEO technology as a "game-changer" for its maritime communities. Licensing was framed as a necessity for disaster resilience, particularly given the vulnerability of submarine cables.

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Indonesia

Asia-Pacific

High

The "Red Carpet" and the Local ISP Tension. In 2024, Starlink officially launched in Indonesia following years of personal lobbying by President Joko Widodo. With 12,548 villages still signal blank spots, Starlink has instead entered urban markets where connectivity already exists.

Malaysia

Asia-Pacific

Moderate

Strategic Alliances and Foreign Ownership Exceptions. Malaysia granted Starlink approval to operate as a 100% foreign-owned entity in July 2023, an exception to the standard 49% foreign equity cap for license holders — following a direct video call between PM Anwar Ibrahim and Elon Musk.

Nigeria

Africa

Moderate

The Most Advanced Model, the Deepest Affordability Crisis. Over 19,000 terrestrial fiber cuts in early 2025 made satellite connectivity a strategic necessity. Nigeria has since adopted the most advanced sovereignty protections of any studied country — yet hardware costs 4.5 months of minimum wage.

Ukraine

Europe

Moderate

Wartime Emergency and the Quest for Autonomy. For Ukraine, LEO satellites are a survival tool. Following the 2022 invasion, Starlink became the backbone of military and civilian resilience — but geofencing restrictions in occupied territories exposed the cost of single-provider dependency.

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Local researchers in each country collected data about the markets and politics surrounding the introduction of LEO satellite services. Each country represents a distinct social and geographic context, including conflict, high and low internet connectivity.

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Top Companies

Satellite internet providers

Five companies are especially visible in space, but one dominates above all others: Starlink, owned by SpaceX.

Explore satellites

Starlink

10,702

Other providers

3,363

OneWeb

651

Kuiper

328

Iridium

Globalstar

Who are we?

SkyCommons Observatory is a ‘Frontiers of Openness’ initiative of the Open Knowledge Foundation to map power, expose risks, and advance public-interest principles, such as openness, interoperability, and accountability into the technical and legal frameworks that govern our common skies—starting with LEO satellite infrastructure. Our aim is to expand this prototype into a permanent global monitoring node that serves as a shared platform for data and research curation, coordination, and advocacy.

About this project