Virgin Media mobile customers might have been subjected to slower mobile internet than others for the past four years.
But the company is now catching up with its competitors, by launching 4G data for the first time in the UK.
The company will also offer customers free messaging on WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger, as part of the 4G contract.
Virgin Media mobile customers might have been subjected to slower mobile internet than others for the past four years. But the company is now catching up with its competitors, by launching 4G data for the first time in the UK
The telecoms giant has announced it has 'zero rated' messages from the two social media services sent over the new 4G network, which was first introduced to the UK by rival EE in 2012.
This zero-rating means customers will not be charged for data used by the specific apps.
'Message and share pics and video without eating into your data allowance,' the company says.
O2 and Vodafone began using 4G technology in 2013.
The firm also said it was introducing 'data rollover' to its 4G mobile plans, meaning data allowance left over at the end of each month would be carried over to the next.
Users will be sent a text message when data is being rolled over and another once it has been used.
'Virgin Media's new mobile plans are fast, flexible and filled with data,' said Virgin Media's managing director of mobile Peter Kelly.
'By offering free messaging on WhatsApp and Messenger we're making sure that Virgin Media customers never have to worry about messaging friends or family, and if there's data left over at the end of the month then we've got that covered too.
'With 4G, our customers have a quicker way to browse, message, stream and play wherever they are.'
Virgin Media said pay monthly data plans on the new connection would start at £6 ($7.45) a month, rising to £25 ($31) a month for 5,000 minutes, unlimited texts and 20GB of data.
'While Virgin has offered 4G to its business customers for a number of months, it has been unable to extend the same offering to consumers, until now,' said Ernest Doku, telecoms expert at uSwitch.com.
'Virgin customers will now benefit from access to EE's 4G network which is the most extensive in the UK but, given that it is late to the party, it was never going to be enough in isolation to gain ground against its rivals.
Users will be sent a text message when data is being rolled over and another once it has been used. 'Virgin Media's new mobile plans are fast, flexible and filled with data,' said Virgin Media's managing director of mobile Peter Kelly. Stock image
The company will offer customers free messaging on WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger, as part of the new 4G contracts. 4G contracts were first introduced to the UK by rival EE in 2012, and O2 and Vodafone followed in 2013
'Instead Virgin has offered a sideswipe to the competition in the form of free Whatsapp and Facebook Messenger usage that doesn't eat into your data allowance and a fair selection of tariffs - not as aggressive as its MVNO brethren but strong once stacked against the major networks.
'Although these apps don't consume huge amounts of data, 42% of British mobile users continue to spend an extra £40 per year on out-of-tariff mobile charges – and with around four in ten incurring these costs by exceeding their mobile data allowances – so every little helps.
'This should be the sort of stimulus to get Virgin Mobile's customer-base moving in the right direction, an MVNO that has waited long enough for lack of access to EE's 4G spectrum.'
According to 2015 figures from regulator Ofcom, 44 per cent of mobile customers have used mobile instant messaging services such as WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger.
The UK ranks 28th in the world for 3G and 4G speeds, according to a report published earlier this year.
The report published in August found 84 per cent of UK networks have a consistent LTE signal, and the country offers average 4G speeds of 13.7 Mbps.