Brazil’s telecommunications regulator threatened sanctions against Elon Musk’s satellite internet firm Starlink, as a public confrontation with the billionaire escalates over the country’s decision to block his social media company X.
Last week, Brazil’s supreme court ordered a nationwide suspension of X for not appointing a legal representative by a court-mandated deadline, in line with the country’s laws.
That ruling was upheld Monday by a panel of federal supreme court justices.
Anatel, Brazil’s telecommunications regulator, has instructed internet providers to block access to X following the court order.
Artur Coimbra, a commissioner at Anatel, told Reuters that Starlink is the only company that has told the regulator that it would not comply with the court decision.
In a separate interview with CNN Brasil on Monday, Coimbra said Anatel is looking into the potential noncompliance of Starlink and other network operators.
Musk’s fight with Brazil stems back to April, when an X representative said that the company was forced by “court decisions to block certain popular accounts.”
The company’s global government affairs team posted on X that the justice froze all of the representative’s bank accounts once she resigned.
He has also characterized Brazil’s court ruling as censorship.
Brazil’s supreme court was not immediately available for comment when contacted by CNBC.
Threatening to impose sanctions on Elon Musk’s satellite internet company Starlink, Brazil’s telecoms regulator is getting more public with the billionaire as a result of the country’s decision to block his social media company X.
Due to X’s failure to designate a legal representative by the stipulated deadline, as required by Brazilian law, the country’s supreme court last week issued an order suspending the company nationwide. A group of justices on the federal supreme court affirmed that decision on Monday.
Internet service providers have been directed by Brazil’s telecoms regulator, Anatel, to obstruct access to X in compliance with the court ruling. Anatel commissioner Artur Coimbra told Reuters that Starlink is the only business that has informed the regulator that it will not follow the court’s ruling.
Anatel is investigating Starlink and other network operators’ possible noncompliance, according to Coimbra, who made this statement in a separate interview with CNN Brasil on Monday. The commissioner stated that a company that disobeys the court order to block X may face fines and possibly lose its right to conduct business in Brazil, among other penalties.
For comments, CNBC has contacted SpaceX, the company that operates Starlink, and Anatel.
Musk and Brazil first became embroiled in April when an X representative claimed that the company was compelled to block certain popular accounts due to “court decisions.”. Musk then declared shortly after that the limitations had been lifted and advised users to download a virtual private network (VPN) in case the social network was blocked in order to access X.
While Brazil gets ready for October municipal elections, the conflict intensified. Legally, social media companies must hire someone who can receive and take into account takedown requests from the government regarding political misinformation.
There isn’t an employee of X in Brazil at all. Last month, the company announced that it was pulling out all of its employees due to ongoing tensions, which led to the most recent legal disputes.
The billionaire’s disagreement with Justice Alexandre de Moraes of the Brazilian Supreme Court, who imposed the ban on X, is heightened by the targeting of Starlink, especially in the context of Brazil.
After receiving an order from Moraes, Starlink said on X last week that it “freezes Starlink’s finances and prevents the company from conducting financial transactions” within the nation.
X charged Moraes last week of threatening to imprison the social network’s attorney. Once the representative resigned, the justice froze all of her bank accounts, according to a post made on X by the company’s global government affairs team.
Musk has attacked Moraes on multiple occasions, calling for his imprisonment and referring to him as a “evil tyrant.”. Additionally, he called the court decision in Brazil “censorship.”.
Upon contacting CNBC, the Brazilian Supreme Court was not immediately reachable for comment.
— This report was assisted by Lora Kolodny of CNBC.
