[DigitalToday reporter Jin-ho Lee (이진호)] LG Uplus will from next month provide voice calls and text messages as a basic service for senior customers. It will apply a "Data Safety Option" to virtually all plans, allowing continued low-speed use after data runs out.

LG Uplus said on May 6 on its website that it will expand call and text benefits and partially restructure its pricing plans to ease the communications cost burden for customers aged 65 and older.

From June 1, LG Uplus will provide calls and texts as a basic service to customers aged 65 and older who use plans costing at least 20,000 won per month that do not include basic voice and text services. The service will be applied automatically without a separate application.

It will also reduce the burden of data use. It will apply the Data Safety Option at no extra charge to all plans except standard plans that do not include a basic data allowance. The Data Safety Option allows customers to keep using data at speeds of up to 400 Kbps even after they have used all of their included data.

It will also revamp its pricing structure. LG Uplus will end new subscriptions to some general and optional plans on May 31 ahead of launching an integrated plan that can be used regardless of whether a customer is on 5G or LTE. Existing subscribers can continue to use the plans. Some senior, youth and online-only plans will expand data allowances and voice and text limits.

The move is part of efforts to guarantee basic communications rights, which the government has stressed. Last month, the Ministry of Science and ICT presented a plan to launch a 5G plan in the 20,000 won range that can be used without limits.