"Buy a 5G Phone, Only Allowed to Subscribe to 5G Plans?" Assemblyman Jo Seung-rae Calls It a "Violation of Choice"

[Asia Economy Reporter Koo Chae-eun] Cho Seung-rae, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea (ruling party whip of the National Assembly Science, Technology, Information and Broadcasting and Communications Committee), stated that requiring consumers who purchase 5G self-supplied phones to subscribe only to 5G plans by telecom companies infringes on consumers' freedom of choice.

On the 26th, Cho said in a press release, "It has been found that consumers who purchased 4th generation (4G·LTE) mobile communication services and 5G-compatible self-supplied devices were forced to subscribe to 5G plans at telecom agency stores, infringing on their right to freely choose plans." A self-supplied device is one that users purchase through electronics stores or online shopping malls without going through telecom companies, allowing them to freely select telecom providers and plans.

However, many telecom companies currently inform that only 5G-exclusive plans can be used with 5G self-supplied devices. Cho’s office revealed, "When directly inquiring with the customer centers of the three major telecom companies, we were informed that to activate a 5G self-supplied device, one must subscribe to a 5G plan." Cho argues that this contradicts the purpose of the self-supplied device system and infringes on consumer choice.

In response to Cho’s criticism, the Ministry of Science and ICT stated, "Due to operational issues of telecom companies, even if a self-supplied device is purchased, 5G-exclusive devices must subscribe to 5G plans." The Korea Communications Commission said, "It is necessary to conduct a thorough investigation of the matter to determine whether any prohibited acts occurred."

Cho emphasized, "It raises suspicion that businesses restrict the plan choices of self-supplied device consumers citing their operational issues, not to increase 5G subscribers." He added, "The Ministry of Science and ICT and the Korea Communications Commission must thoroughly investigate whether such telecom company behavior fundamentally undermining the purpose of self-supplied devices is illegal and prepare fundamental countermeasures."

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