BSkyB ( Sky Broadband ) has, from today (1st September 2011), quietly stopped offering its popular 'up to' 20Mbps Sky Broadband Unlimited package as a truly standalone option. Instead customers who want to adopt the package without taking the Sky TV service will now be required to take Sky Line Rental at £12.25 per month as well. Bizarrely this is still listed under "Broadband Only" on Sky's website.

The move is unsurprising because Sky has been gradually migrating customers away from its older shared unbundled LLU (SMPF) platform and on to its fully unbundled (MPF) one for awhile. The SMPF service, while more costly and less flexible for Sky, allowed existing BT-based customers to adopt Sky's broadband while retaining their line rental with BT. By contrast MPF gives Sky almost total control over the line.

Sky is currently offering 6 months of half price unlimited broadband (i.e. £5 per month) when the package is taken as a bundle with the operators Sky Talk Freetime (Inclusive UK evening and weekend calls) and Sky Line Rental (+£11.25 per month) services; offer ends 29th September 2011.