South Korea just did something no country has done before. Deputy Prime Minister Bae Kyunghoon announced a universal basic mobile data scheme that gives over seven million subscribers unlimited downloads at 400 Kbps after they burn through their paid data allowances. SK Telecom, KT, and LG Uplus all signed on.
The timing isn't random. All three carriers embarrassed themselves with security failures. SK Telecom suffered a massive data leak. LG Uplus had 3TB of customer data turn up on the dark web. KT's femtocell security was so bad it may have distributed malware to its own customers. "We have now reached a critical juncture where we must move beyond mere pledges not to repeat past mistakes," Bae said. The telcos also agreed to budget 5G plans under ₩20,000 (about $13.50), expanded allowances for seniors, and better Wi-Fi on public transit.
Bae also wants carriers to build networks for AI workloads, not just data centers. That means edge computing nodes, faster optical backhaul, real infrastructure. The catch: you still need to buy a mobile plan and own a phone to qualify. Universal basic data, provided you can afford the entry ticket.