Posted: 20th Nov, 2003 By: MarkJ
Earlier in the week one of our readers posted (
HERE) about their concern that BTOpenworlds two-way satellite service had been capped to 8K-ps (roughly 100Kbps). Today BTO has been kind enough to respond with a clarification:
BT Openworld has not permanently capped any usage of its satellite network
If a customer is experiencing reduced bandwidth, this is as a result of the Fair Share policy that BT Openworld operates to ensure a consistently good service for all its satellite customers. This acceptable usage policy is clearly stated as part of BT Openworld¹s Terms and Conditions.
This policy is in place to ensure the best network experience for satellite customers all of the time. All customers are made aware of this at the time of purchasing a broadband Satellite connection.
The Fair Share Policy is based on a 'historical' view of customer usage. This means that if a customer sends or receives an excessive amount of data during a given time frame (as defined in the acceptable usage policy), they will find that during the following week their bandwidth will be capped during peak usage hours only.
However, if users who find themselves above their quota modify their network usage to bring themselves within these levels, they'll go back to receiving normal prioritisation when their total usage within the time frame falls in line with the policy.
The maximum quota levels are significantly higher than most customers usually need, and the Fair Share Policy is purely intended to maintain the integrity of the satellite service.
BT Openworld is committed to providing excellent customer service and high quality products for all users, and the Fair Share policy is a direct reflection of this.We note that this sort of confusion has occurred before, with users being capped and seemingly not being informed before hand.
Not being users of the service we are unclear as to whether this is due to a lack of communication or customer error.