What happens to your TV when you switch broadband?

One Touch Switch is built for broadband and home phone, and Virgin Media's own FAQs say its switching process covers only those two. Virgin adds that what happens to TV varies: some providers cancel it when the broadband goes, others expect you to get in touch and cancel it yourself, and your current provider will tell you which applies once you start switching.

The regulator's line matches. Ofcom's switching advice (last updated July 2026) says a bundle normally goes through One Touch Switch too, but ending the extra services, TV included, may be down to you, and the old provider will set out your options for them.

So you hear from both sides: the new provider confirms which services it is taking over (usually broadband, plus home phone if you're keeping a number), and the current provider tells you what happens to everything you leave behind and what it will cost.

Timing matters. In Ofcom's process, as ISPreview set it out at launch, the switching information from your current provider comes after you place the order but before you give your consent for the switch to go ahead. That is your moment to decide about the TV.

Ofcom's rules also protect you on the switch itself: there's no charge for any notice period running past the switching date, and any loss of service should last no more than one working day. You also have the right to cancel the order within 14 calendar days by contacting the new provider, but Ofcom warns that if the new service has already started you may still have to pay for the service used and any installation costs, and your old service will not automatically be reinstated (Ofcom, page updated July 2026). So act on the switching information before you confirm the switch, not after.

According to Sky's help page on cancelling broadband (checked October 2026), moving your broadband elsewhere is normally a matter of ordering from the new company: Sky Broadband and Sky Talk end by themselves once the new service is switched on. Sky TV, like Sky Mobile, carries on, and ending it means contacting Sky yourself.

EE says the same from the other side: if you already have Sky TV, it will keep working when you switch to EE Broadband, because Sky TV services are delivered separately from your broadband provider.

• Keeping Sky TV? You needn't do anything about the TV when the broadband moves, but check whether its price changes.
• Want rid of Sky TV too? Switching the broadband won't do it. Sky says TV contracts need at least 31 days' notice, which can't end before the minimum term finishes, and any early termination charge for Sky TV is charged upfront when you cancel. Our guide to cancelling Sky Broadband and other Sky services covers the steps.

The Sky broadband deals page shows Sky's own broadband offers at your postcode if you're weighing up keeping everything with Sky.

For Virgin Media's current TV, the published answer is no. Virgin's small print says its Stream box requires Virgin Media broadband of at least 50Mbps and works with a Hub 3 or later, and that the box and remote remain Virgin Media's property. Its Flex terms describe Flex TV as an add-on to Virgin Media broadband, needing at least 50Mbps with a Hub 3 or above, and say Flex isn't available alongside other Virgin Media TV services.

We found no Virgin Media page saying whether older Virgin TV, such as a cable box, can be kept without its broadband, so if you have one, ask Virgin rather than assuming either way.

So if you move your broadband away from Virgin Media, plan on the TV ending too. Virgin's leaving page says (checked October 2026):

• you can cancel at any time by giving 30 days' notice;
• within the minimum term, which will normally be 24 months, an early disconnection fee may apply, and Virgin will give you the figure before you cancel;
• after the minimum term, the contract rolls monthly and can be ended on 30 days' notice without an early disconnection fee;
• you may be asked to return equipment, which Virgin collects or sends a free returns pack for.

If you're keeping your home phone number, Virgin advises checking with your new provider before Virgin's services are disconnected. The full steps are in our guide to cancelling Virgin Media broadband and TV, and the Virgin Media broadband deals page shows Virgin's current offers if you'd rather stay and change package.

The reverse is simpler: Virgin's Flex terms say cancelling Flex doesn't affect any other Virgin Media service.

EE and BT also build their TV on their own broadband. EE's TV page says you need its TV box plus an EE Broadband Hub with a working connection. BT sells TV together with EE as an add-on to BT Broadband, and says its TV box connects straight to the BT hub.

Moving your broadband elsewhere therefore means planning for the TV to end with it. The switching information from EE or BT should say what happens to the TV and whether charges apply; if it doesn't, ask. The EE broadband deals page and BT broadband deals page show what each offers at your postcode if staying put turns out cheaper. Leaving BT? See how to cancel BT broadband.

Two knock-on effects are easy to miss:

• EE One. Under EE's rules, EE One benefits end if you cancel either EE Broadband or EE Mobile, and leaving the broadband costs an EE One customer the discounts and data add-ons on their mobile. Dropping only EE TV leaves EE One intact. Our guide to broadband and mobile discounts explains these links.
• Returning BT kit. BT lends its equipment and charges if it isn't returned. You have 60 days from when you stopped using it, and BT emails a QR code or printable label for a free Royal Mail return.

Even if your TV keeps working, switching the broadband can change its price. Virgin Media says this directly: if you keep other Virgin Media services, discounts linked to a cancelled service may no longer apply.

Ofcom, the communications regulator, has looked at exactly this. Its guidance on General Condition C1 (its contract-requirements rule, June 2022 version) explains how it judges whether linked contracts with different end dates put people off switching. It gives two examples of a "strong dependency" between services: a technical one, where you can't use one part of the bundle without the other, and a financial one, such as losing a discount or paying early termination charges if you move one part before another part's minimum term ends. It says a big gap between those end dates is more likely to cause harm, because it raises the cost of switching.

TV that only works on the same company's broadband is the technical kind; a TV price that jumps when the broadband leaves is the financial kind. The guidance sets out how Ofcom assesses providers; it doesn't give you a right to leave one part of a bundle free, so the costs still need checking.

A hypothetical example: broadband taken on a 24-month term, with TV added twelve months in on a fresh 24-month term. When the broadband's term ends, the TV has a year left, so moving the broadband could mean an exit fee on the TV or a higher, undiscounted TV price.

Before you switch, note each service's minimum term end date, ask what the TV will cost on its own, and check the exit fee on anything you'd end early. Weigh those costs over the months remaining against what the new broadband saves you. If it doesn't add up yet, our guides to leaving broadband without an exit fee and end-of-contract notifications explain when you can leave for free.

If your current pay TV can't come with you, these are the main alternatives, each with its own conditions:

• Sky Stream on your new broadband, subject to Sky's speed recommendations and its own contract.
• Free TV. Citizens Advice says Freeview (aerial) and Freesat (dish) channels need no subscription. Freely, run jointly by the BBC, ITV, Channel 4 and Channel 5, offers live and on-demand TV free over broadband on smart TVs, with no dish or aerial; see our guide to Freely TV.
• NOW. BestBroadbandDeals says NOW works with any broadband provider, though it describes it as far more cut down than Sky Stream.
• Streaming subscriptions. If Netflix or Disney+ came through your TV bill, check what happens to them when the package ends; our guide to streaming subscriptions through your broadband provider sets out each provider's rules.

Steer clear of "fully loaded" streaming sticks and cheap subscriptions offering every paid channel; our guide to the risks of illegal streaming devices explains why. And whichever you choose, GOV.UK says a TV Licence is required for watching or recording live TV on any service, and for BBC iPlayer.

1. Work out how your TV reaches you and who bills it. A dish (Sky Q, Freesat), an aerial (Freeview), or a box that streams over your broadband (Sky Stream, Virgin Stream, EE TV, BT TV)?
2. Check whether the TV needs your current provider's broadband. Virgin Stream and Flex, EE TV and BT TV do; Sky TV doesn't.
3. Find each service's minimum term end date and any exit fee.
4. Read your current provider's switching information as soon as it arrives: what happens to the TV, what it costs, and what happens to any discount.
5. Keeping streaming TV? Pick broadband fast enough for it and the household, then test the speed near the TV.
6. Losing the TV? Line up the replacement before the switch date and note any streaming subscriptions billed through the old provider.
7. Return loaned equipment within the provider's deadline and keep proof of postage or collection.
8. Know the 14-day cooling-off right. You can cancel the order within 14 calendar days via the new provider, but Ofcom says you may pay for any service already used and installation costs, and your old service will not automatically come back, so settle the TV question before you confirm the switch.

When you're ready, compare broadband deals at your postcode. If you're keeping your TV elsewhere, the broadband-only deals page is the place to start; if you'd rather bundle TV with your new broadband, see the broadband and TV deals page. The comparison is a partner widget: it shows deals at your address, and you then order with the provider you choose.