The current state of broadband and mobile data in the UK

I've always watched the Broadband and Mobile markets in the UK, largely from a consumer point of view. This has mainly to have been to get the fastest internet access at the lowest price.

Market Competition

Over the last decade or so, we saw a worrying trend in the Broadband market - we lost a lot of competition. This happened as a few bigger corporations entered the broadband market and consolidated their market share by buying up and closing smaller and often very good broadband operators.

Remember Bulldog internet? Well, they got eaten by TalkTalk. Remember BE internet? They got eaten by O2. Who then got eaten by Sky.

Bulldog and BE internet were once, very well regarded and popular internet providers. I'll let you do your own research on what TalkTalk and Sky's customers currently think of them.

Over the last year or so, this trend has reversed a bit, and we've had a few of the newer entrants trying to push themselves in, for example, EE and Vodafone.

Want a Broadband and Mobile combo? Get stuffed.

EE and Vodafone are mobile network operators and that is where they do the majority of their business. Both offer some fairly competitive broadband packages, but for some odd reason, choose not to bundle anything else in their broadband packages. So two massive companies that offer mobile phone and internet services, don't offer any packages that link the two. Huh?

I cannot understand why they would not do this. Consumers would benefit from getting better deals, and EE and Vodafone would benefit by getting customers that were more embedded into their services. The broadband and mobile services offered by these businesses are essentially treated as two separate entities. When I couldn't find any combined broadband and mobile deals online, I reached out to their online sales staff. Both EE's and Vodafone's sales responded with "You're talking to broadband sales, I can't help you with mobile sales".

I eventually reached out to both companies on twitter - EE actually will throw 5 gigs of data onto your phone package, but that isn't great for someone like me - and they don't actually shout about that offer anywhere.

EE - you are missing a trick. Vodafone - you are missing a trick. Get some packages that link the two and train your staff on all consumer products. Don't treat your broadband and mobile offer as two totally different things. As a potential customer, don't bounce me between departments if I want to talk about buying broadband and mobile.

In Europe, many people use the same provider for their TV, broadband, and family mobile packages. There is no reason why this sort of offer wouldn't be as popular in the UK.

So what about mobile data?

So, we've now got a pretty good 4G network up and down the country - however unlimited mobile data packages have become rare and expensive.

I'm currently on an old three unlimited data package. It costs me £23 a month. If I wanted to take out that package now, it would cost me £30. When I took my package out - it was one of the most expensive. It's now one of the cheapest.

Worryingly, three are now traffic shaping and chipping away at net neutrality by offering up packages that have data limits, but let you access some services in an unlimited fashion. They call it "Go Binge", and claim that if offers you access to Netflix and some other smaller TV streaming services. They are treated as an option on mobile packages:

I'd rather they were just into the business of offering up data, not offering up *some* data. Also, this is starting to look like some of the mobile phone contracts offered up in countries where there are no net neutrality laws.

Facebook, twitter and whatsapp only unlimited in certain packages

Currently no one offers up unlimited data except for three - and that'll cost you £33 a month.

To conclude

Data has gotten more expensive on mobiles. We've got more big companies offering broadband, but aren't using their significant market presence in other areas to offer up better deals.