People are working from home because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Major sporting events across the globe have been halted, students are home and people are generally avoiding gatherings for the same reason.
This development means that people are going to spend long hours at their homes, and those who live by daily compensation from their workplaces are going to hit a rough economic patch.
To this end, countries such as the US have engaged internet companies not to disconnect people in case they don’t clear their bills in time. This will be enforced in the next two months.
Broadband providers and operators have been apprised of the situation by America’s Federal Communications Commission (FCC) because at the moment, millions of school-going children and adults are reading from home.
According to NBC NEWS, some broadband companies and carriers signed up to the FCC’s pledge that seeks to ‘keep Americans connected.’ The pledge means that accounts will not be terminated in the next 60 days for homes or small businesses that will not be able to clear their bills due to the COVID-19 outbreak.
The following companies have since signed the pledge: Google Fibre, Sprint, AT&T, Verizon, T-Mobile, and Comcast, to mention a few.
The companies have also been asked to lift data caps an overage charge.
Those serving health facilities have also been asked to ensure that hospitals are continuously connected.
Other broadband companies have announced temporary discounts for broadband connections.
Some companies are also offering free broadband and W-Fi access to households with college-going students.
Carriers such as AT&T are not enforcing overage fees for subscribers without unlimited home internet access.