"Online Learning Without Data Charges Burden in June"

[Asia Economy Reporter Joselgina] The government will extend the 'zero-rating (no data charges for specific sites)' measure, which allows users to access major educational sites such as EBS on smartphones without data charges, for one more month until the end of June.

The Ministry of Science and ICT and the Ministry of Education announced on the 2nd that they decided on this extension in cooperation with the three major mobile carriers. Previously, from April, when online classes began, until the end of May, these ministries did not deduct data usage so that all students could freely use major educational sites without data fee burdens.

During this period, mobile traffic to these sites also surged. According to aggregated traffic data from the three carriers for five educational sites?EBS, Digital Textbook, e-Hakseupter, EduAble, and Widurang?traffic increased by 460% in April (2,700TB) compared to March (500TB), and by 1,100% in May (6,000TB).

The government expects this extension to contribute to a stable transition from online classes to in-person schooling.

For low-income students, data fee support for educational content such as EBS can be applied for on an annual basis. Starting this month, the government has expanded the eligible recipients so that not only middle and high school students but also elementary school students can benefit. Recipients of educational benefits can apply for the EBS Data Pack or EBS Data Safety Option through the customer centers or websites of the three mobile carriers.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.