Home » UK ISP News Archive » Article Tag: Social Tariff (44 Posts)

Articles for Category Tag - Social Tariff

Confusion as SNP Promotes Social Tariff for Broadband and Mobile

18th June, 2024 (7 Comments)

The Scottish National Party (Pàrtaidh Nàiseanta na h-Alba) yesterday offered a preview of their forthcoming 2024 Manifesto for the UK General Election, which among other things promised to extend their idea of a social tariff for energy providers to also include broadband and mobile services. But the latter already exists.

Scotland Tenders for £106m Gigabit Broadband Rollout in North East

31st May, 2024 (11 Comments)

The Scottish Government has issued a contract notice for the North East of Scotland (Lot 5) under the UK’s £5bn Project Gigabit broadband roll-out scheme, which is expected to expand related connectivity to an estimated 68,342 premises in hard-to-reach (rural) parts of Dundee, Angus, Aberdeenshire, Aberdeen City, Moray, Highland and Perth and Kinross.

Community Fibre Offers Free 50Mbps Broadband to Eligible Londoners

15th May, 2024 (5 Comments)

Network builder and UK ISP CommunityFibre, which runs a 10Gbps capable Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) network across London, as well as parts of Surrey and West Sussex, has today joined forces with the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) to provide “free access to 100% full fibre broadband” to eligible Londoners struggling to get online.

Isle of Man Ponders Social Broadband Tariffs as Manx Telecom Face USO Pressure

22nd April, 2024 (0 Comments)

Members of the Parliament of the Isle of Man (Tynwald) have backed calls for the Communications and Utilities Regulatory Authority (CURA) to introduce a low-cost social tariff for vulnerable broadband users (e.g. unemployed people). Separately, Manx Telecom are being accused of “non-compliance with Universal Service Obligations“.

Scotland Set to Tender for Rural Project Gigabit Broadband Rollout

20th March, 2024 (4 Comments)

The Scottish Government and the Building Digital UK (BDUK) agency have quietly revealed that they intend to publish the first official contract notice for the Project Gigabit broadband rollout scheme in Scotland, starting this month. Some £450m has already been allocated (here) to help this project spread 1Gbps speeds across rural Scotland.

Full Fibre UK ISP Fibrus to Launch Openreach Broadband Plans

27th February, 2024 (6 Comments)

Infracapital-backed network builder and UK ISP Fibrus, which is rolling out a 10Gbps capable Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) broadband network across Northern Ireland and parts of North England (Cumbria), has revealed that they plan to expand their off-net retail provision and coverage by launching Openreach-based packages.

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Full Fibre UK ISP Fibrus Launch Cheap Social Broadband Tariff UPDATE2

7th February, 2024 (8 Comments)

Infracapital-backed internet provider Fibrus, which is rolling out a 10Gbps capable Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) broadband network across Northern Ireland and parts of North England (Cumbria), has today become the latest UK ISP to introduce a cheaper social tariff for those on state benefits (“Full Fibre Essential“).

Vodafone UK Not Retiring Fibre 1 Broadband Plans? UPDATED

24th January, 2024 (9 Comments)

Mobile network operator and ISP Vodafone UK has now, after previously announcing that they were retiring both their old c.35-38Mbps Fibre 1 (FTTC / VDSL2) and related Full Fibre 1 (FTTP) home broadband packages for new customers (not existing subscribers), said this was done in error. But the related Social Tariff is still missing.

Connect Fibre UK Adds 150Mbps Social Broadband Tariff Option

23rd January, 2024 (6 Comments)

Alternative network operator and UK ISP Connect Fibre (Fibre Assets), which aspires to cover 100,000 premises across the East of England with their gigabit-capable Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) network, has launched a new 150Mbps (symmetric) option on their social tariff to help complement the existing 50Mbps plan.

UK Gov Confirm Scotland to Get £450m for Gigabit Broadband Upgrade

14th December, 2023 (5 Comments)

The UK Government has finally revealed that Scotland’s share of the £5bn Project Gigabit broadband rollout scheme will be an “estimated” £450m, although market engagement work is ongoing (i.e. getting feedback from suppliers) and has yet to reach the procurement stage – this was originally supposed to happen in the autumn.

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Ofcom Find 380,000 UK Homes on Cheaper Social Broadband Tariffs

12th December, 2023 (1 Comment)

Ofcom has today published their latest biannual UK consumer affordability report, which reveals that the take-up of cheaper social broadband ISP and mobile tariffs for those on state benefits has increased to 380,000 households (up from 220,000 six months ago). But that still represents just 8.3% of households on Universal Credit (4.6 million).

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SMF Proposes New Approach to UK Broadband Social Tariffs

28th September, 2023 (29 Comments)

A new report from the Social Market Foundation (SMF), which is a British cross-party think-tank, has recommended that companies providing essentials (broadband, energy, water and transport) are made to offer Social Tariffs to vulnerable customers “in a consistent manner” in order to ensure all eligible users can benefit.

ISP Vodafone UK Launch Faster 73Mb Broadband Social Tariff

19th July, 2023 (39 Comments)

Mobile network operator and broadband ISP Vodafone UK has today added a second social broadband tariff for those on state benefits (e.g. Universal Credit), which is called ‘Fibre 2 Essentials‘ and costs a bit more than their existing ‘Essentials Broadband‘ plan, but will give you faster speeds of up to 73Mbps.

Survey Claims Some UK People Struggle to Pay Broadband Bills

13th July, 2023 (22 Comments)

A new Which? survey conducted by Yonder has claimed that 7.2% of households missed a bill or housing payment during June 2023 and, among those who missed one or more bills, 32% struggled to pay for broadband and / or TV, rising to 42% for energy bills, 40% for council tax and 38% for water.

Ofcom UK to Publish Take-up of Social Tariffs by Provider

13th July, 2023 (9 Comments)

Ofcom has published an update on its action plan to support broadband and mobile customers during the cost-of-living crisis, which once again calls on UK ISPs to take “immediate action” to boost the take-up of cheaper social tariffs (available to those on state benefits) and promises to publish take-up data for each provider.

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48% of Low Income Pensioners Struggle to Pay Broadband Bills

13th July, 2023 (20 Comments)

A new YouGov survey of 1,150 adults aged 65+ in England, which was commissioned by older people’s charity Independent Age, has claimed that 48% of respondents on a low income (under £15k a year) have struggled to keep up with their broadband ISP bill in the last 6 months (20% of those found it a constant struggle and 28% struggled from time to time).

Lords Committee – UK Gov Needs Credible Plan to Tackle Digital Exclusion

29th June, 2023 (6 Comments)

A new Lords Committee report has today become the latest to try and tackle the age-old problem of Digital Exclusion (i.e. getting everybody online and ensuring they have the right skills). The Committee finds that the scale of the problem is a “direct consequence of political lethargy” and highlights the UK Government’s “lack of a credible plan.”