Unlimited data for Telstra customers on $99 and above home internet plans

Telstra is finally offering unlimited data with its first home broadband bundles. Starting Tuesday, all customers on $99 and above home internet plans can enjoy unlimited data.

Customers who sign up for the $99 Home Internet Entertainment Bundle may expect unlimited data. It includes a Telstra Gateway Frontier modem, Foxtel Now Starter pack for three months and a new Telstra TV streaming device.

Existing Telstra customers on plans under $99 will get a data boost, at least doubling their current plan allowances automatically. The telco’s announcement comes as Aussie households’ appetite for broadband data continues to grow.

In the past year alone, traffic carried over Telstra’s fixed network has jumped by 40 percent. It shows that streaming services, online gaming and bigger downloads have become common among Aussie households.

“Streaming entertainment content has become a way of life for Australians, with around two thirds of us now streaming our favourite shows,” Telstra executive for Consumer and Small Business Vicki Brady said. She added that consumers are using more connected devices in the home than ever before.

Brady believes that unlimited data will provide peace of mind for Australians. It was the reason the telco launched unlimited bundles for new and existing customers on its $99 and above plans.

Providers have been slow in offering unlimited broadband data to consumers in Australia. Such offer is more common in other countries.

Meanwhile, NBN Co boss Bill Morrow has said that the company behind the rollout of the National Broadband Network is “considering” revealing the maximum download speeds that consumers are rationally capable of expecting. This information was traditionally been withheld from the public.

“(Publishing this information is) something we have been considering discussing with the government, and even with the (retail service providers),” News.com.au quotes Morrow as saying. The disclosures comes weeks after Telstra recognised it had unfairly charged NBN users for internet speeds they could not possibly receive. It is offering some remedies, which include refunds.

Morrow revealed that the company was considering putting out its list of “theoretical” internet speeds that each house or business in Australia could achieve. It could range from a top download speed of 25 megabits per second to four times the amount.

Currently, this information is only accessible to internet service providers. Morrow said the NBN Co was more likely to publish the information if internet providers did not “volunteer to do this.”