You Could Save 10,000 Won with 5G, but Telecom Companies Block LTE Plans and Stay Silent

SKT, KT, and LG Uplus Discontinue 134 Types of LTE Plans
User Notification Remains Insufficient

After controversy arose during last year's National Assembly audit over "LTE plans more expensive than 5G," telecommunications companies suspended new subscriptions for the problematic LTE plans en masse. However, it has been pointed out that existing subscribers received virtually no notification, causing many users to miss out on potential benefits.

According to Choi Sujin, a member of the National Assembly's Science, ICT, Broadcasting, and Communications Committee, last year's audit criticized certain LTE plans for charging higher fees despite offering slower speeds and less data than 5G. These so-called "rip-off plans" accounted for 134 types, or 57% of all LTE plans.

In response, the three major telecom companies sequentially suspended new subscriptions to these LTE plans in the first half of this year. By company: SK Telecom discontinued 36 out of 63 LTE plans (52.7%), KT discontinued 46 out of 88 (52.2%), and LG Uplus discontinued 52 out of 84 (61%).

The issue, however, lies with existing subscribers. Although switching to a 5G plan would improve service quality and save users about 10,000 won per month, the telecom companies did not actively inform users of this fact. Each company relied solely on website notices, without providing individual notifications via text message, notification talk, or billing statements.

As a result, a significant number of users continue to pay high prices for LTE plans with inferior speed and data allowances. In fact, even though more than half of LTE plans were discontinued in the first half of this year, the number of LTE users only decreased from 13 million to 11.5 million, a drop of just 1.5 million.

Assemblywoman Choi emphasized, "Telecom companies are refusing to disclose the status of plan subscribers, citing trade secrets, and the Ministry of Science and ICT is neglecting its duty to require notifications for subscriber protection." She stressed the need to establish institutional measures to protect user rights and interests.