FreedomPop: free mobile phone service to launch in UK
Tariff offering free texts, calls and data will be available this summer.
FreedomPop, a US start-up telecoms company that offers a free basic mobile service to users, has announced it will launch in the UK this summer.
The free tier will offer 200 minutes, 200 texts and 200MB of 3G/4G data each month, plus international calling to over 60 countries and unlimited calls and texts to other FreedomPop users.
How it works
FreedomPop will work as a mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) and will offer its service via Three’s mobile network in the UK.
Unlike other network providers, FreedomPop uses mobile data to send and receive calls and text messages, rather than the traditional mobile voice network.
Users will be able download a FreedomPop app or can insert a FreedomPop SIM into their handset or tablet to make use of their fee calls, texts and data.
Too good to be true?
The deal might sound too good to be true, but FreedomPop says it’s committed to offering basic levels of mobile service 100% free of charge as it believes "mobile access is a right and not a privilege".
The company has to make money of course, but it does so by charging for usage over the basic offering and extra services.
Add-ons will include the ability to add a second foreign phone number so that friends and family outside the UK can call at local rates, which will cost £2 a month.
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FreedomPop
FreedomPop launched in 2012, backed by Skype and Rdio co-founder Niklas Zennstrom.
It caused a stir when it started offering a basic free mobile service in October 2013, and has proved very popular with around one million subscribers, where about half pay for services beyond the free allowance.
FreedomPop won’t be the first to offer a basic free service in the UK. Ovivo Mobile offered a similar deal, which was supported by ads. However, it shut down back in March 2014, leaving 50,000 customers without service.
Shaking up the competition
FreedomPop’s free package sounds enticing and it’s certainly going to shake up the competition when it launches later this year.
However the free tier offers a pretty measly allowance compared to most mobile phone plans and it’s advisable to find out what the charges will be for exceeding the allowance before jumping in.
But for occasional users or a spare or an emergency phone, FreedomPop will represent a saving of at least £60 per year over a cheap SIM-only deal offering the same thing right now.
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