Elon Musk's Starlink Is About to Make Major Waves in the Cruise Industry

Cruise-ship passengers who don't want to sacrifice their WiFi on vacation are in luck.

Royal Caribbean Group is teaming up with SpaceX's Starlink to give its customers and crew high-speed, low-latency connectivity onboard, per a press release from the cruise holding company.

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The news comes in the wake of a tumultuous time for the industry. Carnival Corp's Princess Cruises were among the hardest hit during the pandemic, per CNBC, suffering back-to-back outbreaks.

Despite a vaccine rollout that allowed most travel sectors to resume operations last year, cruise ships remained empty as the industry lost billions of dollars every month, The New York Times reported.

Now, Royal Caribbean is looking to Musk's SpaceX as it considers the future. The cruise line company will install Starlink's broadband internet service on all Royal Caribbean International, Celebrity Cruises and Silversea Cruises ships, and on all new vessels, by the end of the first quarter of 2023.

"This technology will provide game-changing internet connectivity onboard our ships, enhancing the cruise experience for guests and crew alike," Jason Liberty, president and chief executive officer of Royal Caribbean Group, said in the release. "It will improve and enable more high-bandwidth activities like video streaming as well as activities like video calls."

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Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd is down 48% year over year.