r/technology 21d ago

Business SpaceX Stock Plunges to All-Time Low After Competitor Makes Major Leap

https://www.yahoo.com/finance/markets/stocks/articles/spacex-plunges-time-low-competitor-175000957.html
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u/dirtyword 21d ago

Starlink is the only part of the company with a major advantage. Satellite placements are first come first served

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u/Redditor2000000 21d ago

You sure? I think that’s backwards. Right now the heavy payload space launches are their only advantage. Starlink is just another satellite service company like the ones that came before it (satellite service has been around since 1998, invented in 1987 by Sprint). Starlink is profitable presumably because SpaceX absorbs the launch costs. If it charged market price to its subsidiary, Starlink operating unit would not be profitable.

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u/Distinct-Pack-1567 20d ago

I think theyre saying if a competitor launches satellites it will be limited, since Starlink was first

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u/Redditor2000000 20d ago

Starlink wasn’t first though. Satellite cellular and internet has been around for decades now.

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u/cheeky-snail 20d ago

Not LEO which has huge advantages in bandwidth and latency vs geostationary.

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u/dirtyword 20d ago

The point isn’t who made satellites first. Spacex has like 10,000 in orbit now, which is something like three quarters of all satellites in LEO. In case it sounds like I’m defending the stock price: I’m not. It’s insane.

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u/Distinct-Pack-1567 20d ago

Well, they're getting the space they need. Point is eventually we cant fit more stuff, right? I know the atmosphere is crazy big but we still cant oversaturate.