ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq - Starlink on Wednesday launched services in Iraq, the Communications and Media Commission (CMC) announced, as the country expands internet options, especially to remote and underserved areas.

The signing between the CMC and Starlink took place during Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi’s visit to the US earlier this month, where the premier and his delegation signed myriad deals with US companies in different sectors.

“By God's grace, the actual launch of Starlink service in Iraq has now taken place,” Baligh Abu Kallal, head of the executive body of the CMC, wrote on X.

Starlink can now provide another internet option to Iraqis, especially in areas requiring more advanced connectivity solutions.

Different countries have different priceplans. In Iraq, the device costs around $350 dollars and the base 100 megabytes per second subscription is around $87 per month. The US price for the same subscription is $55 per month.

Starlink is a game-changer for remote areas because it uses low orbit satellites, which bypasses the need for traditional cables or cell towers. 

It delivers high-speed internet directly to the places older, geostationary satellite internet or local providers cannot reach. Iraq has many remote areas where network access is hard to reach.
 
Starlink is also known for providing internet to places where the government enforces blackouts, such as Iran, as it also bypasses the government's blockages.

The agreement with Starlink was signed during a US-Iraq business summit hosted by the US Chamber of Commerce in Washington during Zaidi’s visit.
 
According to the chamber, the agreements made during the Iraqi premier’s visit were worth over $60 billion combined.
 
In addition to the Starlink deal, the agreements included partnerships between Iraqi ministries and US firms including ExxonMobil, KBR, GE Vernova, Shell, and Halliburton.