Safaricom Cuts Business Fibre Prices as Rival Starlink Struggles

AFRICAN BUSINESS AND ECONOMYAugust 13, 2025 at 9:15 AM UTC

TLDR

Safaricom has reduced the cost of new business fibre connections by 25% for two months, targeting firms in fibre-ready buildings
The move is aimed at defending its fixed broadband market share against competitors, including Starlink
The discount lowers the 15 Mbps entry plan to KES 2,249 ($17.44) per month from KES 2,999, while the 100 Mbps package drops to KES 4,724 ($36.62) from KES 6,299

Safaricom has reduced the cost of new business fibre connections by 25% for two months, targeting firms in fibre-ready buildings. The move is aimed at defending its fixed broadband market share against competitors, including Starlink, whose Kenyan customer base fell to about 17,000 in March 2025 from roughly 19,000.

The discount lowers the 15 Mbps entry plan to KES 2,249 ($17.44) per month from KES 2,999, while the 100 Mbps package drops to KES 4,724 ($36.62) from KES 6,299. Safaricom, with 678,118 fixed internet customers and a 36.5% market share, is coupling the offer with new credit products for SMEs, a segment also targeted by Liquid Intelligent Technologies and Jamii Telecom.

While Starlink has added ground stations near Nairobi to ease network congestion, high kit and subscription costs make Safaricom’s 5G and fibre offers more competitive in price-sensitive rural and peri-urban markets.

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Points clés à retenir

Safaricom’s temporary price cut reflects intensifying competition in Kenya’s broadband market. Starlink’s decline in active users highlights the challenge satellite providers face competing on price with terrestrial options, especially in cost-sensitive segments. By lowering business fibre entry costs and bundling SME financing, Safaricom is reinforcing its hold on urban and commercial customers while leveraging its 5G home router products to capture rural demand. In these areas, its monthly plans from KES 3,000 ($23.26) undercut Starlink’s Gen 3 kit—priced at KES 50,000 ($387.60) with a KES 6,500 ($50.39) unlimited plan or a KES 1,300 ($10.08) capped option. The strategy also gives Safaricom flexibility to either coexist with or compete against Starlink, depending on future regulatory and partnership developments, as Kenya continues to expand internet access nationwide.

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