Three says no to conversation and yes to obsessive behaviour

Three is about to unleash a wave of binging across the UK, the likes of which have not been seen since the London Tube started operating 24 hour services on the weekend.

The operator will now provide a zero rating offering for the following services; Netflix, TVPlayer, SoundCloud and Deezer, essentially allowing users to binge-watch themselves into oblivion without fear of exceeding data limits.

The proposition itself is being sold as a chance for users to binge ‘without being chained to the couch’. As if we aren’t antisocial enough in the connected era, Three is seemingly trying to remove all conversation from our lives. While encouraging the digital mad society to spend more time glued to the blue screen might be seen as a negative by many brands, Three has whole-heartedly embraced the concept.

“It’s my ambition to unlock any restrictions that stop consumers from enjoying their mobiles and using them to do the things they love,” said Dave Dyson, Three CEO. “With Go Binge we are the first network in the UK to give people the freedom to use their data to stream their favourite shows and music without any boundaries and without worrying about restrictive data allowances and charges.”

To ‘celebrate’ the launch of the offer, Three is opening a ‘luxury retreat’ which is aptly named ‘Bed n Binge Retreat’. Whereas most hotels accept money, Three has said the only way to pay for a stay at the hotel is through binge watching content. In other words, doing sweet F.A.

Once Three has completely removed the concept of conversation from our lives, may be it could remove some of those other irritating things. Healthy eating and exercise has been getting too much positive press at the moment, maybe Dave could have a crack at killing that. Or what about smoking? That’s had a bad rap for years so maybe it’s time for a bit of a binge-puff?

Zero rating offers are now common place throughout the industry, though few are as comprehensive as this one. In the UK, Virgin Media has zero rated WhatsApp and Messenger, which was largely well received, though this new deal from three is leaning more on the content side of things, seemingly learning lessons from T-Mobile US’ ‘Binge On’ proposition.

While this service has been hit by a number of challenges in the courts, it first appeared back in 2015. And while users might be amazed at the number of accessible services through Three’s new offer, over at T-Mobile US, the breadth is truly staggering. There are too many to count (not really, but it’s a long list) which includes Amazon Prime, YouTube, HBO Now, Netflix, Hulu, Watch ESPN, Apple Music and Fox News.

In a world where ‘bigger is better’ is a primary rule, it would appear Three has a bit more world to do before it can start chirping on too much. Come on Big D, you can do better than that.