Musk's Starlink providing broadband to West Virginia

Oct. 4—Residents of West Virginia now have another way to connect to high-speed broadband courtesy of SpaceX.

SpaceX has made its Starlink High-Speed Internet Service immediately available everywhere in West Virginia. SpaceX is operated by billionaire Elon Musk, who was in the news recently for acquiring the social media platform Twitter, which has since been rebranded as X.

Delegate Daniel Linville, R-Cabbell, who serves as the chairman of the House Committee on Technology & Infrastructure, made the announcement. Linville said the SpaceX team visited West Virginia last month and conducted a demonstration of its service on the roof of the state capitol.

Linville thanked Musk for his help to provide access to "reliable, high-speed internet" to all West Virginians. As is the case with most broadband providers, the service isn't free and must be purchased.

Still the arrival of Starlink should help in providing more options for area residents who may live in areas where access to service is currently limited, Delegate Marty Gearheart, R-Mercer, said.

"Based upon the technology, it should be available to everyone in the state of West Virginia, and I think that's a good thing," Gearheart, the House Majority Whip, said.

While there is a cost associated with the Starlink service, Gearheart said it is still a helpful option for those living in remote parts of the region that are currently underserved in terms of broadband.

"It looks a little more expensive. However, if you have nothing else available and you need it, I think it is wonderful," Gearheart said. "I think all of us are going to benefit from it."

As more companies provide broadband service to residents of West Virginia, Gearheart said the market will dictate that prices go down.

Gearheart said efforts have been underway on the local, state and federal level to expand broadband service to areas that are currently lacking or underserved. He pointed to the ongoing work of local broadband provider Gigabeam, which is located in Bluefield and provides broadband service to parts of southern West Virginia and Southwest Virginia.

"We have a broadband supplier here in town with Gigabeam, and they are doing a tremendous amount of work with the number of equipment and trucks I'm seeing," Gearheart said. "They are doing a lot of work."

— Contact Charles Owens at cowens@bdtonline.com

— Contact Charles Owens at cowens@bdtonline.com. Follow him @BDTOwens