Elon Musk's Starlink is now streaming in some rural New Brunswick homes

Starlink, the highly anticipated new high-speed internet service by Elon Musk's SpaceX firm, is currently being used by a select group of "beta testers" including right here in New Brunswick. Greg Rekounis of the Kingston Peninsula is among the lucky small number of Canadians chosen to test out Starlink before it hits the marketplace next year. Rekounas, who's a database administrator, said he hasn't been able to find an adequate internet service provider to properly work from home until now.

"I can be in high definition video conference calls while my family is streaming a Netflix movie, and not notice any type of lag," said Rekounas. 

Starlink does come with a $650 set up fee, but Rekounis says the $130 a month service fee are only $30 more than he previously paid for internet and worth the added cost. Rural Canadians often don't reap the benefits of a quality service and competitive marketplace as far as internet service providers go.

Starlink will be more widely available in 2021.

Although the New Brunswick government says 1,950 New Brunswickers will be receiving the first of two COVID-19 vaccine doses next week, the pandemic is still far from being over. That means border closures are ongoing, which is an added cause for concern for residents of Campobello who normally rely entirely on a bridge to Lubec, Maine to connect to the mainland this time of year.

"Campobello Islanders are important New Brunswickers, and if we can help them out right now, then that's what we are going to do," said Minister of Transportation Jill Green.

The province is collaborating with East Coast Ferries to further subsidize the seasonal ferry from Deer Island to Campobello until the end of December. The extended service will operate four days a week, weather permitting. Minister Green says she and her team will reassess the situation in January to see if further extensions can be made.

Finally, Eileen and Lindsay Campbell’s usual winter travel plans were put on hold due to COVID-19, but the cancelation did quite literally have a bright side for residents of the town of St. Andrews; the Campbell’s tradition of putting up a spectacular amount of Christmas lights is back once more after a seven year hiatus. Located on the corner of Sophia and Carleton St, their block sees a noticeable uptick in holiday traffic when night falls and the lights are at their best.