The complete guide to bundling your broadband, home phone and digital tv broadband choices

Complete Guide to...

Bundling your broadband,
home phone and digital TV
This Consumerchoices.co.uk guide to bundling
your broadband, home phone and digital TV has
everything you need to help you get the best deal,
at the best price.

We’ve highlighted the pros and cons of bundling
and added handy tips on how to choose the
right package.

Whether you’re a first time bundler, want to add
more services to your current package or simply
want to switch to a better deal, our practical guide
will help you find the best bundle for your needs.

In our Consumerchoices.co.uk guide to bundling your
broadband, home phone and TV you’ll find everything you
need to know to help you choose the right services to match
your needs.

Many people pay up to three different suppliers for their
broadband, home phone and digital TV, without realising how
much money and time they could save by switching to just
one provider.

And these days its not just triple play packages that are on
offer – you can even bundle mobile broadband, internet
telephone calls or your mobile phone with your home
broadband – all helping you save even more cash.

So whether you want a bundle on a budget or a
top-of-the-range package with superfast broadband, top TV
channels and anytime calls, we’ll explore what’s on offer and
help you find the right plan to suit your needs.

Contents
What’s inside your guide to bundling your broadband, phone and TV?
Section 1: Section 2: Section 4:
The benefits of bundling Choosing the right bundle Alternative bundles
 Make savings  Triple play – broadband, home phone  Mobile broadband
 How much can you save on a triple and digital TV  Mobile phone contracts
play bundle?  Heavy home phone user  VoIP internet calling
 Easy billing  Speed freak  Wifi minutes
 What type of broadband service do  Heavy downloader
you want?  Bundling on a budget
 Who offers which services?
 What other services do you need? Section 3: Section 5:
 Is bundling the right choice for you?
The impact of line rental Standalone services
on bundling costs  Best home broadband
 Compare line rental costs  Cheapest home phone calls
 Cutting the cost of line rental  Cheapest digital TV
 Compare call rates  Your custom bundle
 Call set-up fees vs call connection
fees

All prices mentioned in this guide are correct as of time of publication, 16 March 2010.

The information published in this document is intended for general information purposes only and should not be construed as financial advice under the Financial Services and
Markets Act 2000. You are strongly advised to take appropriate professional and legal advice from a regulated firm or an agent of a regulated firm before entering into any binding
contract.

Whilst every effort has been made to ensure the content of this document is correct at time of publication Consumerchoices.co.uk cannot accept any responsibility for inaccuracies
or omissions.

2
© Consumerchoices.co.uk 2010

Section 1: The benefits of bundling

The benefits of
bundling
Bundling your home telecoms services has two
main benefits; cost and ease. By combining your
home phone, broadband and digital television you
not only save money, but also save time by paying
for everything on one easy bill.

And today it’s not just your home phone calls, broadband and
TV that can be bundled, you can now get inclusive line rental,
mobile broadband and even your mobile phone contract all from
the same provider.

Whether you just want to bundle your home phone and
broadband, or want a triple or even “quad play” bundle, this

‘‘
complete guide will help you choose the right package to suit
your needs.
ARE YOU A TV ADDICT?
 Make savings All providers offer slightly
You can make big savings by taking all of your home telecoms different combinations of
services from the same company, which is why 46% of channels.
households already bundle their bills.1 Do your homework and
While the number of homes bundling their services has slowly
factor in the cost of that
increased over the past few years, the types of bundles that crucial sports or movie
people have also been changing. channel, depending on
your priorities.
Home phone and broadband bundles used to be the most
popular, but since the digital switchover began, triple
play bundles that include digital TV have become
increasingly popular.

Triple play bundles, comprising of home phone, broadband and
digital TV attracted more than 34% of customers in 2009 – an
increase of 16% since 2007.1

The savings you can make will depend on how many different
services you want, and the provider that you choose. Some
companies offer freebies such as “free broadband”, while others
simply offer very cheap rates.

Some bundles include line rental while others rely on BT’s own
phone network instead. If you have to pay BT separately, it
would mean at least another £11.54 a month on top of your
headline rates.

1
Ofcom Communications Market Report, August 2009
3


 How much can you save on a triple play bundle?
According to Ofcom, “real monthly household spend in
communications services fell for the third year in 2008 and
prices have fallen by almost 5% since 2004” – so there’s never
been a better time to bundle.

For example, taking separate services from three different
providers, and paying £14.99 a month for your broadband, £18
for your digital TV subscription and £11.54 a month for line
rental would set you back nearly £535 a year.

Bundling these three services from just one provider could save
you around £200 a year – and even more in the first year you
switch if you take advantage of special introductory offers. You
can find out how much you can save using the table below:

Bundle
Provider
Triple play
package
Line
rental
Total
annual
cost
Total
annual
saving vs
solo
suppliers
‘‘ DO YOU WANT FAST
BROADBAND? Virgin
Media’s cable network
offers some great speeds
but competitors on non-
cable networks are
Virgin From £18 a £11.99 £359.88* £175.12 upping their speeds all
Media month
the time.
Sky From £18 a £11 £348* £187
month Speeds and high dowload
BT From £21.99 £11.54 £402.33* £132.64
limits are important if
you’re a heavy broadband
*Excluding any installation fees or set up costs. These providers might also offer user. But if you mainly
discounts from time to time so always compare the latest deals.
use the internet for
browsing and emailing,
 Easy billing then superfast speeds
The second big benefit of bundling is that it combines all of your might not be worth the
bills into one easy payment. extra cost
Paying for all your services on one bill helps you keep track of
how much you’re spending and makes budgeting a lot easier. It
also makes paying your bills a lot easier too – no matter how
many different services you take, there’s only ever one amount
to be paid, one direct debit and one company to deal with.

4


 What type of broadband service do you want?
More than three quarters of Brits say that they can’t live without
the internet, so it’s important that you think about the kind of
broadband connection you want with your bundle.1

Different packages have different strengths and weaknesses, so
you need to think carefully about the level of service you need
before signing a contract. Think about whether you need a
superfast internet connection, a high download allowance or
free technical support if you’re technophobe.

Today’s broadband packages start from around 2Mb, going all
the way up to 50Mb from Virgin Media, though most packages
now offer speeds of up to 20Mb or 24Mb.

However, the speed that you actually get will also depend on

‘‘
other factors such as how far you live from your local exchange,
how many other people are using the same line as you – known
as the contention ratio – and any traffic management measures
that your ISP applies at peak times.
ARE YOU A CHATTER-
BOX? Check to ensure
As well as broadband speeds, you also need to think about that the call package in
whether you want a set download allowance, or an “unlimited” your bundle is
package. While “unlimited” packages often let you download
suitable for you. Think
more than those with a set limit, almost all “unlimited”
broadband packages have a fair usage policy attached, which about whether you need
could mean that your connection will be throttled if you free evening, weekend or
download too much. anytime calls
Download speeds and allowances are important but you also
need to take customer service into account – especially if you’re
likely to need regular technical support.

 Who offers which services?

Bundle Broadband Digital TV Home phone Mobile Mobile
provider broadband phone
Sky
    
BT
    
O2
    
Virgin Media
    

1
Communications Consumer Panel, 2009
5


 What other services do you need?
When choosing a new broadband bundle it can be tempting to
add loads of extra services just because they’re cheap – but no
matter how cheap these services are, if you’re not using them,
they’re still a waste of money.

Again, you need to think about your needs as a user. If you
already watch a lot of TV, then a package including digital
television would be a good investment; if you spend a lot of time
on the phone then a cheap home phone calls package, with low
out-of-bundle charges would suit you well; if you want to access
the internet on the go then look for a bundle offering
mobile broadband.

 Is bundling the right choice for you?
There’s no doubt that bundling your broadband with other home
services can save you money and make paying your bills easier,
but is it the right choice for you?

!
As beneficial as bundling is, it does have its limitations.
For example, where you live can dictate your bundling options.
Virgin Media’s cable network – which offers superfast speeds of TOp TIp:
up to 50Mb – currently only covers 51% of the UK, and many
local loop unbundled (LLU) providers – such as TalkTalk and Sky
Find out if you can get
– only offer their cheapest packages, or “free” services in areas the cheap deals offered
where local telephone exchanges have been unbundled. by major providers before
signing up.
Before you switch to cable or an LLU provider, there are some
Many of these offers
issues you should be aware of.
are only available to
If you move to Virgin Media or a completely unbundled provider customers in certain
– where both your broadband and home phone line is supplied areas and you might have
by the same provider – then you will be leaving the BT phone
to pay more if your area
line network altogether. If you later choose to return to a
standard ADSL provider where you pay BT for your line rental, isn’t covered.
then you might have to pay up to £124.99 to have a new line
installed. However, BT says that many people who simply need
their line reactivated do not have to pay.

!
TalkTalk also offers new line installation at the far cheaper rate of
£69.99 for new customers, though you would then be on
TalkTalk’s own LLU network. TOp TIp:
Bundling three services
In addition to the possibility of having to pay for a new line to be
could save you as much
installed, LLU customers switching back to the BT network
might have to pay a “cease and reprovide” fee. This is because as £200 a year.
many standard ADSL providers won’t accept a MAC code –
which allows a seamless migration from one ISP to another
– from an LLU provider.

This means that you might have to pay a fee to have your LLU
line “ceased” and a new line “provided”. The current cost for this
depends on your provider but can be almost £60.

6

Section 2: Choosing the right bundle

Choosing the
right bundle
To choose the right bundle for your home you
need to think about your needs as a user; think
about how many services you will need and the
level of service you want from your broadband,
home phone or digital TV.

!
 Triple play – broadband, home phone
and digital TV
If you want to join the 70% of Broadbandchoices.co.uk users TOp TIp:
who already bundle their broadband, then taking a triple play WANT A FLEXIBLE
package could be the answer for you. DIGITAL TV SERVICE?
If you want high-definition
Triple play packages are best suited to users who need
broadband and a home phone package but who also watch a television, then Sky is
lot of TV – or want to switch to a digital. pretty hard to match. But
Virgin Media is
Three main providers now offer triple play bundles in the form of improving its HD content
broadband, home phone calls and digital TV; BT, Sky and Virgin
Media, with Virgin Media and Sky representing the highest
all the time and also has
number of triple play users. the best choice of on-de-
mand TV.
Virgin Media also offers superfast fibre optic broadband speeds
– with its XXL 50Mb package currently the fastest in the UK, and
10Mb and 20Mb options also available, it was also voted the
Best Bundle Services ISP for Speed and Reliability, in the
Broadbandchoices.co.uk 2010 customer satisfaction survey.

Virgin Media also offers a great selection of digital TV options
and has one of the best video on demand services going – with
both BBC iPlayer and ITV catch-ups direct to your TV as well as
its own channels. The main drawbacks to its bundled packages
are that its cable service is only available to 51% of the country
and the fact that it doesn’t offer the most competitive call rates.

Sky is also a good choice for triple play packages, offering
reliable services across the board, and was voted the Best
Bundled Services ISP for Overall Customer Satisfaction by
respondents in our most recent customer satisfaction survey.

7


As well as the great digital TV services that Sky is known for –
including HD channels and Sky+, Sky also offers a selection of
broadband packages ranging from its 2Mb “free broadband” to
an up to 10Mb package or its unlimited broadband 20Mb
package with absolutely no fair usage policy. Sky also has wider
coverage than Virgin Media.

Again, Sky doesn’t offer the cheapest call rates – though they
are more competitive than Virgin Media – see our table on page
12. Sky customers must also pay an additional £5 a month for
their broadband if they do not take a Sky Talk package.

For the estimated 30% of people who don’t live in an LLU area,
or who aren’t covered by Virgin Media’s cable network, BT
Vision is an option. Any BT Total Broadband customer can add
BT Vision – the provider’s digital TV service – at no extra monthly
cost and with no additional contract. The service is essentially
Freeview but users can then dip in and out with on-demand
programmes and packages on a month-by-month basis or
subscribe to one of its TV packages.

 Heavy home phone user
If you’re less interested in digital TV and just want to bundle your

‘‘
broadband with a home phone package, then there’s a host of
options available to you.

As well as the big triple play providers, all of which offer SWITCHING HOME
broadband and home phone services, you also have providers pHONE: You may need to
like TalkTalk to choose from.
switch your home phone
TalkTalk was originally a telecoms provider, so it has always provider to make the best
offered cheap rates on home phone calls – and as the pioneer savings on a bundle.
of “free broadband” it has also always been one of the cheapest However, when
broadband and home phone providers on the market.
comparing pacakages,
As well as its low rates, calls between TalkTalk users are also don’t forget to factor-in
free, but when it comes to out-of-bundle mobile and the following:
international calls, the provider doesn’t differ massively from BT,  Cost of line rental
Sky and Virgin Media. However, Boosts are available to reduce  Calls package
the cost of mobile phone calls by 50% or give you free
international calls to 36 destinations.  Rates for calls to
mobiles and overseas

8


 Speed freak
If broadband is your priority and you want the fastest possible
connection, then Virgin Media’s cable network is the answer.
Not only does it offer the UK’s fastest headline rate at speeds of
up to 50Mb, but it also offers a 20Mb package and most of its
4Mb customers have already been upgraded to 10Mb for free.

While Virgin Media often outperforms rivals to take the top spot
in broadband speed tests, you shouldn’t expect to reach the top
advertised speed. Like all broadband connections, issues such
as contention – how many other people are sharing your line –
and traffic management could all work to slow you down.

 Heavy downloader
If you’re a heavy downloader and want to spend all day
streaming and downloading BBC iPlayer programmes,

‘‘
uploading pictures to Facebook or playing online games – or if
you simply have a big family who all want to be online at the
same time – then you’ll need a package that can handle UNLIMITED BROADBAND:
your needs. Sky’s Unlimited
broadband and Virgin
Sky’s Unlimited Broadband package is one of the only consumer
broadband packages without a fair usage policy – unlimited
Media’s XXL packages
really does mean unlimited and it comes with download speeds are the only truly
of up to 20Mb. unlimited broadband
services on the market.
Virgin Media’s 50Mb XXL Broadband is also traffic management
Unlimited downloads
free and doesn’t have a fair usage policy either, allowing you to
make the most of your superfast connection without being mean that you can make
penalised. However, its 10Mb and 20Mb packages are traffic the most of gaming,
managed so you could be throttled and slowed down if you watching TV on your
download too much.
computer, and a host of
other useful appllications.

9


 Bundling on a budget
Sky and Virgin Media offer the cheapest bundles on the market,
starting at just £18 a month for broadband, digital TV and home
phone calls.

However, Sky customers only get a 2Mb connection with a low
2GB download allowance, while Virgin Media customers get up
to 10Mb broadband with “unlimited” downloads, subject to a fair
usage policy.

On the TV side, Sky customers can choose any one of its six
entertainment packs – with each additional pack costing an
extra £1, while Virgin Media customers get a set TV package of
60 digital TV channels.

Sky’s Talk Freetime package, which is included in its £18 a
month bundle, comes with inclusive evening and weekend calls,
while Virgin Media’s inclusive call plan only offers free calls at
weekends – though this does include calls to Virgin mobiles as
well as landlines.

If it’s a broadband and home phone bundle you’re after, then
TalkTalk is a great choice. It offers its Essentials package with up
to 24Mb broadband, a 40GB download allowance and free calls
to other TalkTalk numbers and evening and weekend UK
landlines for a monthly total of £18.49 – including £11.49 for

‘‘
TalkTalk line rental.

You can also add a selection of broadband and phone boosts to WHAT IS LLU? It might
increase your download allowance, boost online security or cut seem complicated, but it
the cost of calls.
simply means that your
Plusnet is another low cost broadband and home phone ISp, such as TalkTalk or
provider. It offers a selection of broadband and home phone Sky, has its own network,
bundles, with either a 10GB monthly download limit, or a separate from BT.
massive 80GB allowance. Customers in its LLU areas – which
These networks don’t
Plusnet says covers 80% of UK households – can get these
packages for a total monthly cost of £17.24 a month including cover the whole of the
£11.25 line rental for the 10GB plan, or a total of £23.24 a UK, so in some areas
month for the first three months for the Premium package, your ISp will still have to
£27.24 thereafter.
rent lines from BT, which
Each package comes with free evening and weekend calls to is why there may be price
UK landlines, plus 300 minutes to 20 international destinations, differences in some
though anytime calls can also be added. areas.

10

Section 3: The impact of line rental on bundling costs

The impact of
line rental on
bundling costs
The headline rates of broadband packages – and
bundles – often do not include line rental costs,
which can be £11.54 or more if you’re paying BT
direct. This can mean that although you’ve found a
cheap bundle package, costs will soon rise once
you’ve added on line rental.

‘‘
The rise of LLU providers has injected some much needed com-
HOME pHONE BUNDLES:
petition into the line rental market, and you can still get line rental
for less than £10 a month if you search the market. Many companies who
provide bundled services
have their own telephone
 Compare line rental costs
and broadband networks.
Use the table below to compare line rental costs for some of the
UK’s biggest internet service providers. If you take your phone
and broadband from one
of these companies you
Bundle Provider Line rental cost (with direct debit and online billing)
may find that the overall
BT £11.54
costs work out cheaper.
TalkTalk £11.49

Virgin Media £11.99

Plusnet £11.25

Sky £11

 Cutting the cost of line rental
Because many bundling ISPs are LLU providers, you can often
cut the cost of your line rental by taking it direct from your
broadband provider rather than BT.

However, line rental and headline bundle rates aren’t the only
thing that you need to take into account.

Many bundle providers advertise low headline rates and make
their money back with high home phone call costs. If you’re a
heavy home phone user make sure you compare the cost of
out-of-bundle calls before signing up to a new supplier.

11

Section 3: The impact of line rental on bundling costs

 Compare call rates
Use the table below to compare daytime out-of-bundle call
costs. These call costs do not cover inclusive calls as part of
bundles or international calling add-ons, and prices are correct
at time of writing on 16 March 2010.

Most internet service providers offer international call add-ons,
so if you make a lot of calls to friends and family abroad, contact
your provider to see if you can reduce your bills by taking a
monthly add-on. You can further cut the cost of international
calls by making VoIP internet telephone calls using providers like
Skype or Vonage. You can even make free calls to other Skype
users if they’re online at the same time as you.

Bundle Provider Local rate National rate Mobile call – O2 International Call connection or
landline call – India set-up fee
BT 5.4ppm 5.4ppm 12.5ppm 28ppm 9.3p set-up fee

TalkTalk 4.6ppm 4.6ppm 12ppm 23.75ppm 9.25p connection fee

Virgin Media 7.5ppm 7.5ppm 18.37ppm 77.97ppm 11p connection fee

Plusnet 4ppm 4ppm 11.5ppm 25ppm 6p set-up fee

Sky 5.25ppm 5.25ppm 12.23ppm on Talk 27.5ppm 9p connection fee
Freetime
9.78ppm on Talk
Unlimited

 Call set-up fees vs call connection fees
Call set-up and connection fees are charged by providers on all
chargeable calls – those outside of your bundle – and there is a
difference between the two types of fee.

Your call connection cost is a set fee that you pay on top of the
cost of your call, while call set-up fees are a minimum fee that
you will pay for your call. For example, if your provider charges
an 8p set-up fee, the first 8p of your call will be covered by
this cost.

i TIpS FOR CUTTING THE COST OF
YOUR LINE RENTAL:

• lways pay by direct debit – many providers offer
A
discounts to customers who pay this way
• pt for paperless billing – you might get a discount from
O
your provider and you’ll be helping the environment too
• ompare the market online to find the best deals
C
• ake sure you take call costs into account too. Cheap
M
line rental is no good if you end up paying over the odds
for calls

12

Section 4: Alternative bundles

Alternative
bundles
As well as the more traditional broadband, home
phone and triple play bundles, there’s a host of
other services that can be added to your bundled
packages.

Broadbandchoices.co.uk has found that 58.5% of consumers
felt that bundled services offered better value for money than
subscribing to separate providers – so why not make the most
of your bundle with one of these extra services?

 Mobile broadband
More than 90% of the population can now access mobile
broadband services, depending on their provider, and mobile

!
broadband has become a popular add-on to home broadband
services. Speeds of up to 7.2Mb are available in the fastest
areas and over a million mobile broadband dongles have been
sold in the past year1.
TOp TIp:
Some mobile broadband
Mobile broadband uses the mobile phone network to let you providers such as
access the internet, so even if you live too far from your local T-Mobile and O2 include
telephone exchange to get a decent fixed-line broadband
free wifi hotspot minutes
connection, you might be able to use mobile broadband instead.
in their packages.
Internet service providers such as BT, O2, Orange and Virgin
Media allow you to combine home and mobile broadband into
easy bundles, allowing you to do your heavy downloading at
home, while staying online with mobile broadband when you’re
out and about.

While most standalone mobile broadband packages start at
around £10, bundled packages can cost as little as £5 a month
– though your download allowance will usually be lower.

Many mobile broadband providers now also offer “free laptop”
deals as part of their packages, allowing you to spread the cost
of a new PC over 24 months.

1
Digital Britain report, 2009
13

Section 4: Alternative bundles

 Mobile phone contracts
Bundling your home broadband with your mobile phone
contract can save you even more money. O2 – which won all six
key satisfaction categories as well as being voted Best Overall
Provider in the Broadbandchoices.co.uk 2010 customer
satisfaction survey – offers discounts to its mobile phone
customers who also take its award-winning home broadband.
This means that an O2 mobile phone customer can get speeds
up to 20Mb, with “unlimited” downloads and a very generous
fair usage policy for just £10 a month.

Mobile phone provider Orange also offers home broadband,
mobile broadband and mobile phone bundles, with discounts
and exclusive deals for existing customers.

Virgin Media also offers mobile phone contracts as part of its
bundles and is the only provider to offer quad play bundles
combining home broadband, home phone, digital TV and mobile
phone – and you can even add mobile broadband to the
deal too.

!
 VoIP internet calling
A number of broadband providers, such as BT and Orange,
offer VoIP internet phone services that can be bundled with their TOp TIp:
broadband packages. However, this doesn’t mean that you Think about the services
have to make all of your calls using a microphone and headset you will actually use –
while connected to your PC. don’t add them just
You will receive a handset – like a traditional telephone – that
because they’re cheap.
connects to your wireless router, allowing you to make much If you won’t use them,
cheaper calls over the internet. they will just be a waste
of money.
BT’s Hub Phone even allows you to switch between internet
calls and traditional landline calls using the same handset.

 Wifi minutes
BT, O2 and T-Mobile all offer free wireless hotspot minutes with
selected home or mobile broadband packages.

These wifi minutes allow you to log on to the internet using a
fixed wireless network in a hotel, train station or café – anywhere
that you can pick up a wireless signal offered by your provider.
This means that you can get online even if you don’t have
mobile broadband, or save on your precious mobile broadband
download allowance.

Wifi providers also have a network of hotspots around the world,
allowing you to get online no matter where you are.

What can you bundle with your broadband?
You can now bundle as many as six different services with
your home broadband:

n Home phone n Digital TV
n Mobile broadband n Mobile phone
n VoIP n Wifi

14

Section 5: Standalone services

Standalone
services
If you don’t want to be locked into a big bundled
package, then you could do some research and
come up with your own bundle. That way you’ll
know you’ve got the most suitable broadband
package, the cheapest home phone service and
low-cost digital TV.

If you’re choosing on price alone, you could find that a Primus
landline and calls package, Plusnet broadband and a Freeview

!
box could be a great custom package, for example.

 Best home broadband
O2 came top in the most recent Broadbandchoices.co.uk TOp TIp: Some less
customer satisfaction survey, as well as receiving a rash of well-known providers,
awards since launching in 2007. Its packages offer great value such as primus and Your-
for money – especially if you’re an existing mobile Calls.net, offer price-
phone customer.
conscious deals for home
As an existing O2 mobile phone customer you could get its phone.
Premium package for just £10 a month, with speeds of up to In broadband, plusnet’s
20Mb and “unlimited” downloads. Non-customers can get the Value package is just
package for £15 a month. However, landline costs are
£5.99 a month.
not included.
Finally, if you don’t want
BE Broadband which shares its network with O2 – also offers the slick TV service pro-
excellent broadband packages, with fast speeds and a reliable vided by Sky or Virgin Me-
connection. BE’s Unlimited package comes with speeds of up
dia, a Freeview box gives
to 24Mb and “unlimited” downloads with a very generous fair
usage policy and costs £17.88 a month on a 12 month contract you access to plenty of
or £20.43 a month on a three month rolling contract. However, digital channels.
like O2, you will also need a phone line for this service.

Virgin Media’s 20Mb XL Broadband package costs £25 a month
for the first three months, £30 a month thereafter as a
standalone product. Although you don’t need a phone line to
use cable broadband, you can actually save money by signing
up to Virgin Media’s phone line at £11.99 a month. With this you
also get free weekend calls to national landlines. Taken with its
phone line, the 20Mb package costs just £20 a month.

Cheaper standalone broadband packages are available, such as
Plusnet’s Value Broadband at just £5.99 a month – currently the
cheapest in the UK. However, while the ISP has won awards for
its service, the package comes with slower speeds of up to 8Mb
and a lower set download allowance of 10GB a month.

15


 Cheapest home phone calls
Primus offers one of the cheapest line rental rates on the
market, at just £8.99 a month, which automatically comes with
free evening and weekend UK landline calls, or anytime calls for
just £5.99 a month.

Out of bundle daytime calls to UK landlines are charged at just
3ppm, mobile calls from 10ppm and calls to India at just 18ppm
– far cheaper than the big bundling providers.

YourCalls.net is another cheap home phone provider, with line
rental at £9.25 a month and free evening and weekend calls to
UK landlines plus a discount to your chosen Golden Destination.
You can upgrade to anytime UK landline calls for just £2.95 a
month and receive a further discount on mobile phone calls.

Out of bundle daytime calls to UK landlines are charged at
3ppm, mobile calls at 12.04ppm and calls to India at just 20ppm
– again, far cheaper than the big bundling providers.

!
Alternatively, you could opt for a VoIP provider like Skype or
Vonage which offer call packages from as little as £3.39 a month
with Skype as well as free calls to other users online or £5.99 a TOp TIp:
month from Vonage. Type in your postcode at
Skype users can even install Skype on certain mobile phone Homephonechoices.co.uk
models to make free calls to other Skype users direct from their to search for the cheap-
mobile, while Vonage customers can use a traditional-style est home phone provider
handset to make their calls. in your area.

16


 Cheapest digital TV
As the digital switchover makes its way across the country,
everyone will eventually have to either subscribe to a digital TV
supplier like BT, Sky or Virgin Media, or buy a digital set-top box
for Freeview or Freesat access.

Because it doesn’t require a monthly subscription, Freeview is
by far the cheapest option for anyone wanting digital TV.
Freeview now offers over 45 digital TV channels as well as radio
stations, with set-top boxes starting from as little as £15. Digital
TV recorders are also available, allowing you to record, pause
and rewind “live” TV.

Freesat – the digital satellite TV service from the BBC and ITV
– is another alternative to monthly subscriptions. It comes with
over 140 TV and radio channels and you can even get free HD
programmes if you have the right set-top box and TV set. If you
don’t already have a working satellite dish you will need to have
a Freesat dish installed and you can even buy a HD set-top
boxes from as little as £67.

‘‘
 Your custom bundle
This means that you can get the best broadband, with the FREE DIGITAL TV:
cheapest home phone calls and line rental, along with a great Freesat comes with over
selection of digital TV channels from as little as £18.99 as an
140 TV and radio
existing O2 mobile customer or £23.99 a month as a non-O2
customer, with a Primus landline, plus the one-off cost of a channels, as well as
Freeview set-top box – without having to take a triple play some HD programmes.
bundle from one of the big four providers.

i
Useful guides

Why not use more of our consumer guides to help you speed up your broadband,
find the best mobile broadband deal or learn how to watch TV online.

Complete guide to speeding up your broadband
http://www.broadbandchoices.co.uk/speeding-up-your-broadband-complete-guide.
html

Complete guide to mobile broadband
http://www.broadbandchoices.co.uk/mobile-broadband-complete-guide.html

Making the most of watching TV online
http://www.broadbandchoices.co.uk/watching-tv-online.html

Is cheap broadband really worth it?
http://www.broadbandchoices.co.uk/cheapest-broadband.html

Top tips for downloading
http://www.broadbandchoices.co.uk/top-tips-for-downloaders.html

17

Bundling your broadband glossary

ADSL – Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line. Technology that converts standard copper wires,
used for telephones, enabling them to support high-speed internet. “Asymmetric” refers to the
fact that download and upload speeds are different – the data travelling to your house (download)
will be faster than the data going back to the exchange (upload).

Bandwidth – The data transfer capabilities of your broadband connection. The faster your
connection, the more capacity it has.

Broadband – High-speed digital internet connection (ADSL, cable, mobile or satellite).

Cable – A way of obtaining broadband internet via fibre optic cables, offered by Virgin Media.

Contention rate – Refers to the maximum number of people that will be sharing the bandwidth
on one connection between the local exchange and provider. For ADSL connections this is usually
50:1, meaning that at peak times you’ll be sharing your bandwidth with 49 other people on
your street.

Dongle – A portable modem used to receive a mobile broadband signal.

Download – The transmission of data from the internet to your computer, such as pictures,
videos and web pages.

Gigabyte (GB) – A measure of data size, also written as GB. 1,024 times larger than a Megabyte
(MB). In a broadband package this would refer to your download limit.

Hotspot – A public place where users can access the internet wirelessly.

ISP – Internet Service Provider. The company that provides your broadband connection.

Kbps (Kb) – Kilobits per second, also written as Kb. This is a measure of bandwidth (the speed at
which data is transferred). Kbps is usually used if the measurement is less than 1Mb. These
measurements are used to represent the speed of your broadband connection.

Local loop unbundled (LLU) – When an ISP has installed its own technology in the local
exchange, thereby “unbundling” it, and bypassing BT’s network. This allows LLU providers to offer
much cheaper packages but does have some drawbacks.

Megabit (Mb) – Also written as Mb or Mbps. This is a measure of bandwidth (the speed at which
data is transferred). Mbps is usually used if the measurement is more than 1Mb. These
measurements are used to represent the speed of your broadband connection. Not to be
confused with Megabytes (MB).

Megabyte (MB) – A measure of data size, also written as MB. In a broadband package this
would refer to your download limit.

Mobile broadband – Broadband delivered via the mobile phone network to a portable dongle
modem connected to your laptop.

Quad play – Four services delivered as a bundle from a single provider.

Triple play – Three services delivered as a bundle from a single provider.

Video on Demand (VoD) – Allows you to watch selected programmes or films when you want
over the internet or via digital TV.

Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) – Uses your broadband connection to allow you to make
very cheap or even free calls over the internet.

18

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The complete guide to bundling your broadband, home phone and digital tv broadband choices