## 5 Structure
Source: own based on [93] (p.8), [96] (p. 7). According to SpaceX and Eutelsat's bold moves, the commercial satellites' structure was changed substantially (Figure 9). Both CubeSats and Starlink/OneWeb operate at LEO, thus changing dramatically the structure of the satellite placement as well (Table 2). The revenue from Starlink is now helping to fund SpaceX's further technological advancements, reducing its reliance on government contracts. The ultimate goal is Starship--a fully reusable super-heavy rocket capable of carrying payloads to orbit and beyond, namely to the Moon and Mars. It will strongly leverage economies of scale due to the huge lift. If, additionally, full reusability is achieved across both stages, launch costs could drop again by an order of magnitude, unlocking entirely new possibilities for the space economy [57]. The space industry has undergone a profound transformation, moving from a landscape dominated by the public sector and a few large government-backed contractors to one fueled by private-sector competition, technological breakthroughs, and new business models. NASA's partial shift from cost-plus contracts towards a fixed-price model, accompanied by the inflow of private capital into the launch segment (upstream), resulted in the cost-cutting innovations driven by new private players, which are focused not only on government contracts but also on market competition. Furthermore, this cost lowering, accompanied by technological progress and miniaturization, resulted in lowering significant barriers to entry to the satellite segment. [PERSON] called this the triple-whammy effect: (1) according to the technological deflation trend, the price of 1 kg of hardware is sharply decreasing, while (2) according to the miniaturization, the capability possible to pack into that 1 kg is rapidly increasing, and finally (3) the price at which that 1 kg could be placed in orbit is steeply declining [59]. Meanwhile, governments' roles have shifted from sole operators to regulators and facilitators. \begin{table}
\begin{tabular}{c c c c c c c} \hline \hline  & \multicolumn{2}{c}{**June 2011**} & \multicolumn{2}{c}{**June 2024**} & \multicolumn{2}{c}{**Dynamics**} & \multicolumn{1}{c}{**CAGR**} \\ \cline{2-7}
**Orbit** & **\#** & **Share** & **\#** & **Share** & & \\ \hline LEO & 480 & 50\% & 8110 & 92\% & 1690\% & 24.3\% \\ MEO & 66 & 7\% & 199 & 2\% & 302\% & 8.9\% \\ GEO & 405 & 43\% & 552 & 6\% & 136\% & 2.4\% \\ Total & 951 & 100\% & 8861 & 100\% & 932\% & 18.7\% \\ \hline \hline \end{tabular} Source: own based on data from [54] and [105].  
\end{table} 
Table 2: The structure of satellites by orbit type in 2011 and 2024. Figure 9: Commercial satellites split up among the operators with \(\geq\)30 satellites: (**a**) with SpaceX and (**b**) without SpaceX. Source: own based on data from [93; 96; 98; 104]. From this point of view, the \"First Fundamental Theorem of Welfare Economics\", as expressed by [38], proved the superiority of market-driven space activity. However, one with a skeptical mindset would find that in some cases, markets gravitate towards concentration, oligopoly, and even monopoly. And this is precisely the case we observed in just the last few years in the launching segment, where SpaceX reaches about one-half of the market share, as well as in satellites, where the same company completely dominated the commercial satellites with two-thirds of this pie. When we took into account only the relevant market, namely low-latency satellite internet communication, the dominance of SpaceX was overwhelming. Starlink, with 90% of this market, is clearly a monopolist. As we know from economics, when someone has monopoly power, they can use it for any reason and for any purpose. Starlink's market position allows [PERSON]'s unilateral decisions with global consequences. In the light of the \"First Fundamental Theorem of Welfare Economics\", the concentration of market power in one firm and its discretionary, extra-national power challenge the conditions under which the theorem holds.