Kyivstar plans to present commercialization options for Starlink Direct to Cell in Q3 2026
Ukraine’s largest mobile operator, Kyivstar, has confirmed plans to expand the use of Starlink Direct to Cell technology in 2026, moving beyond text messaging to voice calls and mobile internet, and plans to present commercialization options for the service in the third quarter.
"We are considering certain approaches to the commercialization of data and voice services via OTT… We will present this sometime in the third quarter of 2026," said Kyivstar president and CEO Oleksandr Komarov.
At the same time, he emphasized that the operator is currently focusing on Direct to Cell (D2C) as a humanitarian service aimed at reducing customer churn and increasing loyalty.
Komarov recalled that free messaging via the Starlink D2C network was launched in November 2025. Currently, nearly 5 million users from the operator’s total subscriber base of 22.4 million are using the technology.
According to him, the ratio of sent to received SMS messages is 20% to 80%. Due to the wartime situation, the service is particularly popular in eastern Ukraine, near the front line, and there is no difference compared with the terrestrial network in terms of message delivery or quality.
Regarding the commercialization of future services, Komarov suggested that the offering could take the form of a separate value-added service or an additional feature bundled with higher-priced subscription plans.
"All options are possible," he said.
As reported, Kyivstar served 22.4 million mobile subscribers and 1.2 million Home Internet subscribers as of the end of 2025. In 2025, the company increased EBITDA by 30% to UAH 27 billion while revenue rose by 30.3% to UAH 48.2 billion. In the fourth quarter of last year alone, EBITDA increased by 23.1% to UAH 7.2 billion as revenue grew by 30.1% to UAH 13.5 billion.
