SpaceX might be opening up some ad space, quite literally, with opportunities to buy advertising on an orbiting satellite in the future and even accepting Dogecoin and other cryptocurrencies as payment. Where the advertising is shown, how to see it, who can participate, and how to become an advertiser might be of interest to individuals as well as businesses.
SpaceX and Tesla each hold Bitcoin, however, the Founder of both companies, Elon Musk, has expressed some concern that generating cryptocurrencies requires a significant amount of energy. The companies will not be divesting from Bitcoin anytime soon and Musk personally holds Bitcoin, Dogecoin, and Ethereum, continuing to champion the concept, even if not fully satisfied with the current implementation.
According to a recent Business Insider report, SpaceX is partnering with a Canadian startup, Geometric Energy Corporation (GEC), to launch a satellite into orbit via a Falcon 9 rocket in order to display advertising. This makes the term 'ad space' more literal than it has ever been. The article contained quotes from GEC CEO Samuel Reid and the satellite is said to be made of CubeSats, which is a small, cube-shaped design that is among the lightest and most compact possible. One side of the satellite is planned to display a pixelated screen where the 'advertisements' will appear. As if this wasn't a unique enough idea, the ad space will be made up of pixels that will be sold individually. This means multiple pixels will need to be purchased in order to display a logo or a message.
The CubeSat that will display advertising and other content made up of purchased pixels is being developed currently so ad space will not be in orbit for several months. According to GEC's website, a SpaceX Falcon 9 rideshare is scheduled for June 1, 2022, delivering twelve 6U CubeSats, meaning twelve satellites with each being composed of 6 CubeSats. It isn't clear if all of these satellites are meant to be used for advertising or if other purposes are planned as well. The advertising screen will supposedly be captured via a camera on a protruding selfie stick and beamed down to Earth and live-streamed on YouTube or Twitch.
Reid described this as an effort to democratize access to space and expressed the hope that it isn't used for offensive material but didn't mention any plans to limit or censor the content either. Pixels will be purchasable with cryptocurrencies such as Ethereum, with plans to add Dogecoin in the future. Prices have not been finalized and advertising doesn't appear to be available for purchase yet, but will be available to anyone that is interested and that can afford the unnamed cost. Reid referenced art projects such as the now defunct Reddit Place and still active Satoshi's Place, which is a collaborative online artboard made up of a million pixels that are sold individually and paid for in cryptocurrency. If the SpaceX and GEC satellite advertising works in a similar matter, any ad will need to be carefully planned since it might be overwritten with other pixel purchases, a new type of digital graffiti. SpaceX selling advertising in space is certainly an interesting concept but, even if the display is visible from Earth, a telescope would be needed and ads on Twitch and YouTube are nothing new.
Source: Business Insider, GEC
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