Vocus launches first data link layer Starlink service in Australia

Network backbone provider Vocus has launched Australia's first Layer 2 integration with the Starlink network.

This feature is aimed at enabling enterprise and government customers to extend secure private networks to remote locations, without data travelling over the public internet.

The provider has established private peering points with Starlink in Sydney and Perth, creating a direct pathway for satellite data into Vocus' network rather than via the public internet.

The first service available is Vocus IP wide area network (WAN) over Starlink Ethernet Access, allowing organisations to maintain identical security profiles for satellite-connected sites as their terrestrial network locations.

"The Starlink network offers a new level of performance compared to traditional geostationary satellite services, but some organisations face limitations with the standard offering," Ashley Neale, head of space and wireless operations at Vocus, said.

Standard Starlink services use dynamic IP addressing, which creates compatibility issues with enterprise applications and cloud firewalls that require static IP addresses.

Critical infrastructure operators including water utilities and power grid operators often have security policies prohibiting control data from travelling over the public internet.

Vocus' Layer 2 integration addresses these limitations by enabling organisations to apply identical security policies and their own, private IP addressing to remote sites as their core locations.

"There is no need for the service to be tunnelled over the internet to be part of a private virtual private network (VPN) – the traffic is transmitted on a different network layer to the internet and inaccessible to internet users," Neale said.

The service supports quality of service profiles, enabling critical applications including voice, video and telemetry to perform under heavy network load.

Government agencies, critical infrastructure providers and organisations managing sensitive systems in remote locations are already using the service in early release.

Vocus plans to launch an Enterprise Internet service for Starlink providing static IP addresses to improve compatibility with cloud firewalls and business applications.

This service will enable customers to establish a single, controlled internet access point through a Vocus firewall, reducing deployment time and costs whilst maintaining security.

The offering also provides National Broadband Network (NBN) customers with a migration path from Layer 2 Business Satellite Service as NBN Co prepares to discontinue the service in December 2025.

Vocus is evaluating additional Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellite networks for integration, having announced plans to provide services over Telesat Lightspeed once operational.

Mining operations in the Pilbara, regional water treatment plants and temporary emergency services command posts are among the use cases already deployed.