SpaceX looks poised to pay rival Hughesnet a commission that works out to two months of service revenue for each customer it converts to Starlink, according to new regulatory filings.
This “fee-based referral program” was first revealed in November after Hughesnet’s parent company, EchoStar, reached a nearly $20 billion spectrum deal with SpaceX to essentially become partners. In a Monday financial filing, EchoStar revealed more details.
SpaceX will compensate EchoStar with two fees: “(i) 1 month Starlink ARPU [average revenue per user] payable at the time of the Existing Customer’s enrollment with Starlink and (ii) 1 month Starlink ARPU payable at the one-year anniversary of the Existing Customer’s enrollment.”
In other words, it looks like EchoStar could receive two months of Starlink sales revenue, assuming each converted customer uses Starlink for at least a year. SpaceX is currently charging up to $120 per month for a Residential plan and up to $165 for the Roam tier. The referral system applies to new and existing customers for Hughesnet and EchoStar’s carrier business, Boost Mobile.
(Credit: Li Hongbo/VCG via Getty Images)
Existing Hughesnet customers who switch can also get a Starlink dish for free during a one-year period that started on Dec. 1, 2025. “Thereafter, the hardware will be provided for $100 per standard Starlink kit for each Existing Customer,” the document adds. Meanwhile, SpaceX will be charged with handling the delivery and services to Hughesnet subscribers who switch.
EchoStar and Hughesnet didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment on when it might begin referring customers. So far, Hughesnet hasn’t mentioned the program on its website. Still, EchoStar’s two other companies, Dish Network and Boost Mobile, have already started promoting Starlink sales and installations.
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In September, EchoStar’s former CEO, Hamid Akhavan, also said: “SpaceX is the undisputed leader in the marketplace in terms of connectivity for internet today using Starlink.”
Still, two months of service revenue isn’t exactly a lot for Hughesnet, considering the satellite internet service charges its own customers between $40 and $100 per month. However, the company previously warned in November that it was running out of cash, “which raises substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern.”
In addition, Hughesnet has been bleeding customers to Starlink, which currently has over 10 million active users across the globe. Hughesnet only had 783,000 in September, down from 1.56 million in 2020.
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“There is a question of what happens to Hughes next,” says satellite industry analyst Tim Farrar. “Recall that they have $1.5 billion of debt coming due this summer (in August), so it is possible that EchoStar could put the Hughes entity into bankruptcy rather than repaying that debt.”
The referral program could appeal to Hughesnet since “there’s no cost to providing those services, they are all managed by Starlink,” he adds. “Hughes was losing customers fast, in any case. This is just Starlink trying to secure those customers before Amazon enters the market.”
In September, Akhavan also noted: “We saw a Starlink come in, we saw [Amazon’s Leo] potentially come in, and others. We kind of saw that and decided that we would reduce our emphasis,” he explained. “We decided that we need to expand our approach to [the] enterprise.”
About Our Expert
Michael Kan
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I’ve been a journalist for over 15 years. I got my start as a schools and cities reporter in Kansas City and joined PCMag in 2017, where I cover satellite internet services, cybersecurity, PC hardware, and more. I’m currently based in San Francisco, but previously spent over five years in China, covering the country’s technology sector.
Since 2020, I’ve covered the launch and explosive growth of SpaceX’s Starlink satellite internet service, writing 600+ stories on availability and feature launches, but also the regulatory battles over the expansion of satellite constellations, fights with rival providers like AST SpaceMobile and Amazon, and the effort to expand into satellite-based mobile service. I’ve combed through FCC filings for the latest news and driven to remote corners of California to test Starlink’s cellular service.
I also cover cyber threats, from ransomware gangs to the emergence of AI-based malware. Earlier this year, the FTC forced Avast to pay consumers $16.5 million for secretly harvesting and selling their personal information to third-party clients, as revealed in my joint investigation with Motherboard.
I also cover the PC graphics card market. Pandemic-era shortages led me to camp out in front of a Best Buy to get an RTX 3000. I’m now following how President Trump’s tariffs will affect the industry. I’m always eager to learn more, so please jump in the comments with feedback and send me tips.
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