Virgin launching free landline-to-mobile calls

The Gadget Show  Monday 01 February 2010

Free calls, coming in April

Ever-increasing mobile call bundles have relegated most people’s landlines to nothing more than a vehicle for their home internet connection. Even modest monthly tariffs offer plenty of free calling minutes to both landlines and mobiles – packages landline providers just can’t compete with.

Virgin Media, however, is aiming to turn things around, and will become the first UK provider to offer free landline-to-mobile calls from April 1. The cable company’s four million UK customers will get unlimited free calls from their landline to any Virgin mobiles throughout the UK – regardless of tariff.

With Virgin offering the full ‘quad-play’ of landline, mobile, TV and internet services, it’s clearly trying to boost the number of its subscribers using all four – currently standing at around 10 per cent.

Chronic chatterboxes should note, however, that the free charge only applies to the first 60 minutes of the call. After that you’ll be paying the same full price as calling other networks – though you can just hang up and call again for another hour-long natter.