Starry Group Holdings announced today that it’s expanding to Las Vegas, where it will bring its fixed wireless technology to about 500,000 households when it launches later this year. It marks Starry’s seventh market launch.
According to Starry, its debut in Las Vegas couldn’t come fast enough. Citing stats from a Nevada State Broadband Strategy report, Starry said Nevada ranks as the 35th most connected state in the U.S., with more than 31,600 households lacking access to the current minimum broadband service levels of 25 Mbps download and 3 Mbps upload service set by the FCC.
The report also found that most people in Nevada who live in areas with broadband access are unable to afford it, a result of the U.S having some of the highest costs of broadband service in the developed world at an average of $80/month.
“There is an urgent need for competition in the broadband industry and we’re excited to bring a new broadband service option to Nevada,” said Starry co-founder and CEO Chet Kanojia in a press release. “Most American consumers lack a choice in internet providers, leaving them with sky high bills for sub-par service, or worse, no broadband service at all because they can’t afford it. Starry set out to change that because we believe that every family should have access to the connectivity they need to thrive.”
Starry’s basic plan is $50/month for up to 200 Mbps download/100 Mbps upload broadband service. It says there are no data caps or equipment fees, and no long-term-contracts.
Starry uses IEEE 802.11-based technology and 24 GHz and 37 GHz spectrum to reach homes with its flavor of fixed wireless.
The company, which went public earlier this year, said it’s building its network in Las Vegas in partnership with Quanta, a specialty contractor serving the utility, renewable energy, communications, pipeline and energy industries.
Starry’s other markets are Boston, New York City, Washington, D.C., Denver, Los Angeles and Columbus, Ohio, with an expansion roadmap covering more than 40 million households across the United States.