Elon Musk-controlled satellite internet provider Starlink has told Brazil’s telecom regulator Anatel it will not comply with a court order to block social media platform X in the country until its local accounts are unfrozen.

Anatel confirmed the information to Reuters on Monday after its head Carlos Baigorri told Globo TV it had received a note from Starlink, which has more than 200,000 customers in Brazil, and passed it onto Brazil’s top court.

Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes last week ordered all telecom providers in the country to shut down X, which is also owned by billionaire Musk, for lacking a legal representative in Brazil.

The move also led to the freezing of Starlink’s bank accounts in Brazil. Starlink is a unit of Musk-led rocket company SpaceX. The billionaire responded to the account block by calling Moraes a “dictator.”

  • peopleproblems@lemmy.world
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    2 months ago

    I mean to be fair, Starlink is a satellite network.

    Edit: this is a shitty Dad joke for those that are taking my comment seriously.

    Most of you don’t deserve your humor license if you have one

      • peopleproblems@lemmy.world
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        2 months ago

        No I mean it’s literally a satellite network. It’s in orbit.

        It’s above the law. Literally.

        Edit: a lot of people whooshing this. How? It’s so fucking simple.

        Orbit = Space. Brazil = Earth.

        Space altitude > Brazil Altitude.

        Orbit is literally above guys. Like come the fuck on. It’s a funny joke.

              • peopleproblems@lemmy.world
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                2 months ago

                It’s not misuse. Come on. You can’t fucking honestly convince me that satellites orbit lower than Brazil.

                Literal: Conforming or limited to the simplest, nonfigurative, or most obvious meaning of a word or words.

                Above: On high; overhead.

                • AwesomeLowlander@sh.itjust.works
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                  2 months ago

                  Satellites orbit above Brazil, I agree with you. Your statement however was that satellites are above the rule of law. Given that the rule of law is a conceptual thing, that’s very much a metaphor, hence non literal.

                  Look, I get your joke, I’m not trying to belittle you or get into an argument or anything. I’m just explaining why you collected like 20 downvotes on it because you seem to want to know.

    • norimee@lemmy.world
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      2 months ago

      Yeah, and they can do in space whatever they want (probably). But if they want to operate on earth providing a service within a country, they have to abide by the law of this country or stay out of it.

      It’s like American Internet companies have to follow EU law if they want to operate in the EU, even if the company itself or their servers are in the US. GDPR privacy laws is a good example.