March 17, 2020
With so many Americans having to work from home due to the Coronavirus outbreak, there are concerns about how to stay connected and ensure that everyone has access to internet service. Luckily, a few companies have stepped up to make sure that these workers have not only faster internet speeds, but free of charge internet for low-income households and free hotspots nationwide.
Comcast has opened up their Xfinity WIFI network for free and is also providing unlimited data to everyone. They are also offering free hotspots all around the U.S., they are pausing data plans for 60 days (giving unlimited data at no charge), no late fees or late disconnects for those who are unable to pay their bills, and their Internet Essentials program is now free to new customers.
AT&T will not terminate wireless, home phone, broadband residential or small business customer service for customers that are unable to pay. They will also be waiving late fees, allowing anyone to use their WiFi hotspots, and offering unlimited internet data and access for only $10/month to limited income households.
Verizon will not be terminating service for inability to pay for residential or small business customers, they will be waiving late fees for customers affected by COVID-19, and tripling data allowance for Verizon Innovative Learning schools.
As of March 16, Charter will be offering free Spectrum Broadband and WiFi for 60 days to households that do not currently have a broadband subscription and are a household with K-12 or college students (installation fees will also be waived for new student households) plus open WiFi spots.
Sprint will not terminate service for inability to pay due to Coronavirus issues, they will be waiving late fees caused by pandemic, anyone with long-distance call plans will receive complimentary international calling rates (from the U.S. to countries defined as Level 3 by the CDC), customers with metered plans will receive unlimited data for 60 days for free, an extra 20GB of mobile hotspot data for 60 days, and coming soon, customers with mobile hotspot-capable handsets without a hotspot will receive 20GB per month for 60 days for free.
T-Mobile and Metro by T-Mobile customers with data plans will now receive unlimited smartphone data (excluding roaming), an additional 20GB of mobile hotspot/tethering service for 60 days, extra 5GB of free data per month for the next 2 months, and give students and schools 20GB of data per month for free.
Please share this information with anyone you know that might find it useful to stay or get connected. Finding ways to help each other by connecting digitally will be a great takeaway from this moment in history.
Tune into our blog for other topics related to the tech industry. If you are currently working from home, check out our blog on 5 tips on how to grow professionally and personally while working remote.