TV, Broadband & Phone Bundles

The digital switchover is just around the corner, and sooner or later all of us will have to find an alternative to analogue TV. If you haven't made the switch to digital by the time your area switches over, you will lose the old analogue signal and won't be able to keep up with your favourite programmes.

UK communications companies have helped increase the availability of broadband and digital TV over the last 5 years. These services can be combined with home phone to form "bundles" which can allow you to make savings when you take all your home communications services from the same provider.

Why should I bundle?
Bundling is the cheapest way to get all your communications services such as home phone line rental, calls, broadband and TV from one supplier on a single monthly bill. Bundles have become extremely competitive of late and you can even get "free" services such as a set-top box (like Virgin Media) and digital TV channels for the same fee you are already paying. Choosing a bundle removes the stresses normally associated with organising changes to your communications set up as it means you only have to deal with one provider. This also means you will only have one bill and one payment going out each month so it’s easy to keep track of your finances.

Are there issues with bundling?
With price being the key factor in bundled packages and with the majority of those packages providing some form of free element, quality may not be at the top of the pecking order. The most likely element of the package to suffer is likely to be the broadband or the calls so best make sure to check the details of the broadband package and call prices that are on offer.

How much to bundles cost?
Sky's main bundle (called 'See Speak Surf') costs £26 per month and you get six digital channel mixes accompanied by up to 8Mb broadband and home phone (excluding line rental). On top of this you will need to pay an extra £11 a month to BT for your line rental.

Another successful package is Virgin Media's 3 for £30 bundle which offers a few less channels than Sky's See Speak Surf, provides up to 2Mb broadband and home phone, the main difference is that there's no extra charge for line rental.

A recent addition to the list of TV suppliers is Tiscali who are offering a basic package with digital TV (IPTV), up to 8Mb broadband and a home phone for £19.99 per month. This includes line rental but service is restricted to densely populated areas in the UK but this situation is improving as Tiscali are increasing the number of exchanges that they have unbundled from BT.

How can I select the right bundle for me?
We recommend you use the YourHomeBills.com digital TV calculator to get the best deal for you.