One year into its partnership with SpaceX, Telstra is reporting numbers that should make every telecom executive pay attention. Australia's largest carrier says more than 2.7 million of its customers have connected to Starlink Mobile at least once since the service launched, with over 200,000 connecting every single day.
The service — a direct-to-device satellite text messaging capability built on SpaceX's Starlink network — was announced in January 2025 and officially launched around June 2025. It's designed as a safety net rather than a primary connection: when a Telstra customer steps outside mobile network coverage, compatible phones can fall back to satellite to send and receive text messages, provided they have a clear view of the sky.
Compatible hardware currently includes the iPhone 13 family and newer, Samsung Galaxy S24 and newer, and the Pixel 9 family and newer. The service is available to customers on Telstra's Upfront mobile plans. Voice and data over satellite are on the roadmap as the technology matures, but text messaging is what's live today.
The 2.7 million figure is striking context for the direct-to-device satellite race unfolding globally. Australia's geography — vast outback, sparse rural coverage — makes it a natural proving ground for this technology, and Telstra's adoption data gives SpaceX a compelling real-world case study to bring to other carrier partnerships worldwide. Whether daily usage continues to grow as the novelty factor fades will be the more telling metric to watch over the next 12 months.
Sources & reporting notes
The links below identify the material source records used for this report.
- @SawyerMerritt on X (2026-06-03T15:39:18.000Z) — Direct source
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