UK telecom companies lift broadband limitations

Many people are confined to their homes as a result of the recent COVID-19 outbreak. In order to prevent internet outages and reduce the load on the ISPs, companies like YouTube and Netflix have reduced their streaming quality. Now the UK government and the telecommunications industry have announced that “all providers will remove all data allowance caps on all current fixed broadband services.”

The involved telecom companies are “BT/EE, Openreach, Virgin Media, Sky, TalkTalk, O2, Vodafone, Three, Hyperoptic, Gigaclear, and KCOM”. They and the UK government have agreed on four commitments, effective immediately. The first commitment involves making sure that those who struggle with paying their bill as a result of the virus are “treated fairly and appropriately supported”.

Image credit: Phys.org

The second – and perhaps more concrete – commitment is that “all providers will remove all data allowance caps on all current fixed broadband services.” Stephen van Rooyen, Chief Executive Officer at Sky UK Ltd, says that: “There has never been a more important time for people to stay connected. We will play our part to help everyone stay in contact with their loved ones and to ensure vulnerable people can access the help and information they need.”

The initiative from the UK government and the telecommunications industry will hopefully help those in need and make it easier to work and stay in touch with friends and family. 

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KitGuru says: It's great to see that the government and companies are working together to help people in need. What do you think of the initiative? 

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