Telefonica-owned MVNO giffgaff is expanding into home broadband with a trial phase and is inviting up to 500 customers to test the product.
The trial offers 12 months of broadband at just £10 per month, with fibre speeds of 500Mbps. Participants will also receive a £100 reward in exchange for feedback.
The new service will later be supported by Virgin Media O2’s wholesale broadband infrastructure. giffgaff becomes the first brand to use Virgin Media O2’s new wholesale broadband platform, and the second wholesale customer of nexfibre, a challenger to BT in the UK’s fixed connectivity market. Nexfibre is a joint venture between InfraVia Capital Partners, Liberty Global and Telefónica and is financed with £4.5 billion of equity and debt investment.
In keeping with its member-first ethos, giffgaff is calling on its community to help co-create the broadband experience. Giffgaff was founded in 2009 as a wholly owned subsidiary of Telefónica UK (O2) offering flexible, contract-free SIM-only plans with a strong emphasis on customer input. The name “giffgaff” is a Scots phrase meaning “mutual giving,”
Ash Schofield, CEO of giffgaff, commented:
“Broadband is a natural evolution for us as a connectivity brand. We’re committed to bringing together the best tech, with the experience of our customers — to build better broadband.”
The move is set to strengthen the national reach of the Virgin Media O2 and nexfibre full fibre network,
Ernest Doku, broadband expert at Uswitch.com, commented: “giffgaff’s entry into the broadband market could be exciting news for consumers looking for an alternative to the bigger players. While giffgaff’s full fibre broadband is only being offered on a trial basis at the moment, working directly with consumers to test its new service as ‘co-creators’ is a good way of showing its commitment to ‘building a better broadband’ The real test will be what kind of pricing will giffgaff be offering to consumers as this product becomes more widely available.