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Unlimited tethering no longer available to new Three customers

by Mark Tyson on 19 March 2014, 12:15

Tags: Three (HKG:0013)

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Mobile network Three has confirmed rumours that it's removing the unlimited tethering from its One Plan. The terms for the plan will now be limited to a maximum of 2GB of tethering data for all new contracts whilst existing customers will continue to receive unlimited tethering until the time that their deal expires. It was also announced that all 0800 calls will now be free on new calling plans with Three.

New contracts offered from today will include data allowances from 500MB rising to all-you-can-eat, from 50 calling minutes going up to unlimited minutes, bundled with unlimited texts. Tethering on 500MB, 1GB and 2GB plans can account for the entirety of the data allowance. The major change made is to the all-you-can-eat packages which are now capped at 2GB of tethering where additional tethering chunks will be sold as add-ons. Also from now on Three is going to call tethering 'Personal Hotspot' in all its communications.

Three has also confirmed to Wired that the network's popular One Plan "will no longer be available for contract handset sales" but only as a SIM-only plan. Current SIM-only contract customers will remain unaffected, retaining their tethering options.

Some customers were tethering 2TB of data per month

Three's spokersperson told TrustedReviews that the change in its plan is to allow the company to "manage its network a little better." With 4G tethering with downloads speeds in excess of 30Mbits/sec in central London, it meant that some customers could happy substitute their standard broadband or fibre connection with a One Plan including unlimited tethering. "A small percentage of customers were taking advantage of the tethering benefits, using up to 2 terabytes of data a month, making it unfair for the other 99 per cent," said the spokesperson.

Perhaps softening the impact of the tethering changes somewhat Three has started to offer free 0800 number calling to new 24 month contract sign-up customers. An Ofcom report published yesterday revealed that UK mobile customers pay out over £600 million every year calling these numbers (and 0870, 0845) from their mobiles. To help address the 08XX 'free' number confusion Three will offer free 0800, 0808 and 0500 number calling and 084* and 087* numbers for just 5p per minute.



HEXUS Forums :: 26 Comments

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Well this is utter poo. The few ruin it for the many. And looking at the new contracts they have really stripped it back. Not as much value as before, o2 offer 4g cheap now.

Will need to do more research but saddened at this move.
I forsee a lot of customers jumping ship. Everyone I know on 3 have the One Plan specifically because it's unlimited tethering.
MonkeyL
I forsee a lot of customers jumping ship. Everyone I know on 3 have the One Plan specifically because it's unlimited tethering.
Typically I rarely send any SMS messages or make a single phone call each month, the only reason I have a One plan is for the unlimited data and as I work away during the week tethering to my laptop.

I was just about to renew my contract when it is due for renewal at the start of April but now it looks like I'll have to start looking around at alternatives.
I loved the unlimited tethering but I wont leave just because of this, when I come to renew my 12 month contract I will just use it as a haggling point :P I do wish they left it to something high like 10gb because sometimes my internet goes down and I do like tethering my pc to it but never to do insane stuff its just mostly streaming videos and some downloads, 10gb would be plentiful and would stop the abuse but I agree a lot of people took the utter piss downloading several TB (know a few ….) still atleast they have truely unlimited mobile data! And 4g is free(relatively anyway) cant wait for 4g to arrive in plymouth :).
The terms for the plan will now be limited to a maximum of 2GB of tethering data for all new contracts whilst existing customers will continue to receive unlimited tethering until the time that their deal expires

I'm on a one month rolling contract so does that mean I lose my unlimited tethering at the end of the month?