ISP TalkTalk Hikes the Cost of Unlimited UK Calls Boost Add-on
Customers of UK broadband ISP TalkTalk, specifically those that take a landline phone service with the optional “Unlimited UK Calls Boost” plan, may be unhappy to learn that the monthly price they pay will be hiked by an additional £2 per month from 15th January 2021.
The plan normally costs £12 a month and for that you can call all standard UK landlines and mobiles all day, every day for no extra charge (calls to the Channel Islands, Isle of Man, dial-up internet, indirect access and all other numbers are not included). But due to the change this price will now be increased to £14 (credits to MSE for spotting), but as this is on a monthly term then it’s easy enough to cancel.
A spokesperson for TalkTalk said: “Our customers are using their landlines less and less in favour of online services such as WhatsApp and FaceTime, so to continue operating our Unlimited UK Calls Boost we’ve had to reassess our offering.” Alternatively, these days it’s often much cheaper to get unlimited calls via various different mobile operators (e.g. ID Mobile, giffgaff and others).
Mark is a professional technology writer, IT consultant and computer engineer from Dorset (England), he also founded ISPreview in 1999 and enjoys analysing the latest telecoms and broadband developments. Find me on X (Twitter), Mastodon, Facebook and Linkedin.
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Stealth tax on the elderly who are one of the only age groups who use these packages.
Ofcom will probably review all these costs soon.
Even the “elderly” know when they are being ripped off and not to forget that so called oldies were the first generation of computer users. Many have switched across to Zoom/Skype or have mobile phones these days.
Cancelled my boost last week. Pay as you go will be very suitable (except when calling the likes of Ryanair!)
You’re absolutely right Darren!
My wife and I both in our late 70’s have this package because the landline is our normal way to communicate with all and sundry, it’s just going to chisel away at our cash mountain!
Have a good Christmas.
If your in contract the actual cost is £1 per month
So less people use the landlines due to mobiles and free PC web chat and the way for a company to encourage people to use landlines is to charge them more?
TalkTalk the company that doesn’t understand economics.
Well they just got bought so..
New company got to make their money back somehow
Or maybe they are going to keep increasing the price until everyone leaves and they can stop spamming them voice services over landlines?
It’s clearly you who don’t understand economics in this scenario…
There is zero market growth potential for landline calling, so it doesn’t matter what the price is – you’re not going to attract more customers.
With a dwindling customer base, the cost per customer will be continually increasing. The price will therefore keep increasing to accommodate for this until it eventually reaches a tipping point where the entire service is unviable.
… and a merry Christmas to you too.
(BTW I assume you meant 2021 ..?)
Yes I had the email a few days ago, this with the unwarned increase in out of contract price has spurred me into changing my ISP.
With TT not offering phone with FTTP and this increase, it seems obvious to me that they are no longer interested in providing phone services. The ‘sorry you are leaving’ email included the phrase ‘no increase in price during contract’, this is not correct, it only applies to internet portion of bill.
In their defence (which is something that I rarely do with TalkTalk!) are you in contract for calls – I think the add-on is usually offered on rolling terms?
Whether I was in contract is of some debate, technically I signed up until Aug 19, then entered into discussions over FTTP which was promised to me ‘imminently’, by some means the contracted price was extended ‘until such time as FTTP was offered to me by TT’, since TT started FTTP back in summer I’ve been in discussions as to when they might be able to lay it to my house from the pole, and how it might be possible to port number to Sipgate without interruption of service. This has been beyond the capabilities of TT, and couple of weeks back they offered the straight FTTP with no landline number and no way of porting it, my next bill went up to out of contract price.
How do providers actually pay for calls – is there any justification for charging £14 per month? I assume it must be fairly cheap given mobile providers are able to offer unlimited calls and texts and a bit of data for £5 or so?
(it’s something I know nothing about nor do I know what I’d Google to find out – reading material greatly appreciated)
Calls to mobile networks cost a little under half a penny a minute wholesale. Calls to landlines are even less, about 0.2p per minute if I remember correctly.
Given that as a consumer I buy mobile minutes at 1.8p and landline for 0.6p per minute for a VOIP home phone, the wholesale costs must be a fraction of this. (those cots also include VAT)
Yes, just like I said!
My guess is your really not paying for calls but subsidising other services.
@occasionally factual I’d be interested to know your supplier at those rates as I call mobiles alot! Let us know 😉
@Jack
Those are from Localphone.com which I use for outgoing mobile calls. I have a Sipgate basic number for incoming calls and selected outgoing.
@dave
I know you did, I was just adding in a real world example of consumer VoIP call costs to help with your argument of costs for call at the wholesale level. It was to support your comment with facts, not to take anything away from it.
Ok, I hasn’t realised that!
@occasionally factual
Thanks! Will check them out soon! I already use Sipgate for all our calls in and out with a ported Virgin Media number we had for 20 years and a Andrews&Arnold Mobile Number for call diversion to my PBX hosted voicemail from my mobile instead of using my mobile networks (I change so often that messages are lost when I move).
Seems as if Localphone could help lower outbound call costs to mobiles if i setup the dial plan correctly. Thanks so much!
Will be cancelling mine… £14 a month is daylight robbery, can get unlimited minutes on a 30 day SIM only for £4.95 a month.
Almost as an aside I’ve got unlimited minutes on my mobile, but that’s for use when out and about, at home I can’t guarantee a signal, otherwise the landline would have gone long ago.
If TT and OR want us all to move to FTTP then why not start offering VOIP now as a cheaper option. That would encourage people to switch.
I still use and like my landline. If someone calls and I’m in great, if not leave a message, I don’t want all sorts of calls on my mobile if I’m out and busy doing something else.
This is shocking and really annoys me.
My uncle has learning difficulties and the landline is how he communicates. He currently with TalkTalk but the price seem to always jump up for the little things like this.
I think this latest increase may prompt me to abandon TT ! This combined with the regular outages I am getting is now enough to convince me to move on .
Ditto mate pure rip off against eldeley.
Not like the old days the more you use the cheaper it got not today the more you use put up the price RIP OFF TALK TALK get your act together
The best way to treat companies like talk talk is leave when your out of contract there are some fantastic deals around and not just with the main companies
Calls to jersey gone up with int may call boost I have relatives there it cost an arm and leg to chat to my sister.
It is not just calls Talktalk are changing. They are stopping their TV boosts as well, they say use Now TV, but I dont want to use an app as I surf the channels
I’m sure if you sub to now TV via TalkTalk themselves you get access to Now TV channels via the epg guide (surf channels)
Again, another stealth tax . When I renewed my contract with TalkTalk in August of this year, I was assured there would be no ‘sneaky increases!’ And, surprise, surprise, I am informed by email my calls boosts is being increased by £2. How would they feel if I decided to deduct £2.00 from my monthly direct debit … unfortunately new company, new rules…. shame on you… and, guess what I am tied into this contract for 22 months,
I checked and UK calls from a TT landline cost 18p per minute. I’m switching to my mobile.
S0rry to hear these moans about t t surely 2pounds a month is not a lot these days surely depends on how many calls you make.
P s if you make a lot then its fine, if not then pack it in . Dont forget all the other costs of a moblie.
Good value for VDSL but the landline monthly charges are ridiculous, when I signed up with Talk Talk there was a special offer for this service £9.50 per month for unlimited mobile and landline calls so I decided to sign up, great until they decided to
Bung up the price cancelling the discount, I immediately cancelled this service…they have lost out because I didn’t use this service to often…up yours Talk Talk!
We use talk land-line only because mobile signal is so bad we have to stand in the garden and often get cut off very frustrating when it has just taken ages to get through why are phone ads promoting 5 g when they cannot supply 4 g every where yet we are with id but other people have trouble in our house we are 5 miles from Southampton not in the middle of nowear its very annoying
Yes and they have increased the price of talktalk tv but you don’t get as many channels as well.
If your area has nowtv broadband available they often include an anytime call package for free. I agree though prices are exploitative though the bigger scandal are the call charges without a package.