Mobile carriers to introduce budget 5G plan this week

[Photo by Yonhap]

South Korea’s SK telecom Co. and LG Uplus Corp. are set to introduce fifth-generation (5G) communication plans in the 30,000 won ($22.31) range this week, following KT Corp.’s earlier move.

According to telecommunications industry sources on Sunday, SK telecom and LG Uplus are in talks with the Ministry of Science and ICT to revamp their 5G plans by bringing down the lower limit to the 30,000 won range and segmenting the 5G data into smaller sections.

The affordable rate plans are expected to be available this week. SK telecom and LG Uplus are considering revising their existing pricing plans by segmenting them or expanding the amount of data provided.

The 30,000 won rate plan is expected to be the de facto final step in the Korean government‘s policy to lower household telecommunication costs.

The government had announced its intention to abolish the Mobile Device Distribution Improvement Act, and issued a notice saying that even before its abolition, it would allow the mobile carriers to provide switching subsidies of up to 500,000 won to reduce the actual burden of household communication expenses and induce market competition.

However, as the mobile carriers did not provide as much switching support as expected by only offering a maximum of 130,000 won, Korea Communications Commission (KCC) Chairman Kim Hong-il met with representatives from the three carriers and the president of Samsung Electronics Co. last week to urge cooperation in reducing communication costs.

In response, SK telecom, KT, and LG Uplus collectively raised their switching subsidies to up to 330,000 won, depending on the rate plan and mobile phone device, as of Saturday.

The mobile carriers set the subsidies ranging from 30,000 to 330,000 won for switching mobile service providers, with KT offering the highest switching subsidy amount range of between 50,000 and 330,000 won for 15 types of mobile devices, depending on the plan.