Fair Usage

A Fair Usage Policy (FUP) can normally be found buried within the terms & conditions on a provider’s website or advertising material. You know the pages and pages of legal text that you just click through? Somewhere in there will be a clause that states that once a customer reaches an unspecified amount of usage that the provider deems unacceptable, that provider can then take action against that user.

Exactly what that action might be can vary. Most ISPs will notify a customer first and ask them to curb their usage, usually by writing. After that, punishment for heavy usage could be anything from applying extra charges to an account or slow down speeds for that customer so they can’t download as much as they did before.

This can be a very tricky situation for a consumer because each provider has their own idea of what ‘fair’ is. Some ISPs are well known for never acting on their fair usage policy at all, while others are likely to start reducing the speed of their customers very quickly. It can be hugely limiting for people who are expecting unlimited broadband to suddenly be told they need to stop downloading or curb their internet habits.

Several consumer groups are calling for FUPs to be more transparent and explain more to the consumer. They are also calling for providers that heavily employ their fair usage policy to be banned from using the word ‘unlimited’ in their adverts altogether.

Traffic Management

Traffic management is the other way providers get around offering unlimited broadband to consumers. It’s not quite the same as an FUP though. Traffic management normally occurs during peak times when a lot of people are connected to the internet at once. In order for a provider to keep up a decent level of service to every subscriber, everybody becomes limited to a certain speed for a short period of time.

While it can be just as frustrating as Fair Usage policy, traffic management is usually on a temporary measure, although it’s often a regular one. For example, many providers will employ traffic shaping every day between about 5pm-10pm in the evening, which are the busiest times for UK providers.

Details about traffic shaping can also be difficult to find, but unlike FUPs when you do find a providers traffic management policy it’s very likely it will have specific details about when it will be slowing the net down and when it will be speeding it back up again. Most providers that use a regular traffic management service turn it off after midnight.

How to Avoid Being Trapped

Giving a list of ‘good’ providers in this article would be useless, as providers change their methods and policies quite often. This means that the only way to avoid being stuck with a provider that reduces your speed is to do your research first. Comparison sites and other blogs and news websites normally have a way for you to find out how much traffic shaping goes on within an ISP, and many sites also have reports from users, as well.

Of course, if you’re only a very light internet user who doesn’t download files often, you may not have to worry so much about traffic shaping or FUPs. Don’t think that being a light user means you won’t be affected at all though – some of the biggest ISPs in the UK throttle the net so much that even using YouTube during peak times can be difficult, so you should always be mindful of these tactics when choosing a new provider.

However, Virgin also offer an ADSL package for those people unable to receive cable services, which is currently around half of the country. Previously this service hasn’t offered anything special – it’s had the same 8-16 Mbps cap and BT line rental requirements as most other UK ADSL packages, but all that has changed this month.

Customers in range of the companies LLU network will now be able to achieve potential speeds of up to 20 Mbps, putting the maximum available connection in line with the ‘medium’ package on the Cable side. For the first time ever, the company will also be offering ADSL customers the chance to rent their phone line through Virgin rather BT, something that was previously only offered to their cable customers.

Achieving the best speeds is, as always, unlikely unless you live very close to your local exchange, so few people will find the 20 Mbps ADSL service as fast as the 20 Mbps cable service offered by the same company. However, it’s a good move and one that makes Virgin an attractive option even if you can’t get cable in your area. Currently, customers can get the 20 Mbps connections and line rental for £26 a month which is quite a lot cheaper than BT line rental and an equivalent speed connection from many other ADSL companies.

The most recent survey was conducted by Moneysupermarket.com, and has found that 60% of people simply don’t want to move because they are happy with the services of their current provider, even though the same survey found that nearly 80% of those surveyed believed they could potentially be on a better deal. Amazingly, over 10% of the 2,010 UK consumers polled in the survey said they hadn’t changed simply because they can’t be bothered.

The study has found that around 33 million people – that’s not far from half of the entire population of the country – are actually not on the very best deal available to them. While many people may be stuck on longer contracts and find switching impossible, that’s still a huge number of people who are missing out on better deals. Of course, if your ISP is performing well you might not want to switch, but comparing broadband doesn’t mean committing to changing your ISP, only keeping your options open about what’s out there.

For those that can’t be bothered, Broadband and Mobiles manager of Money Supermarket James Parker makes an excellent point: “Our research has shown that those who had switched services in the last 12 months had saved almost £200 over that time – this makes a huge difference to the household wallet and could be used to pay for a treat for you and the family.”

Fast, cheap Broadband is Available if you look!

Here at ukcheapbroadband.com, we do realise that with our readers we may well be preaching to the converted, but if you haven’t been tempted to take a look at the many hundreds of different packages and deals available on the market today, perhaps now might be a good time to check! Don’t be one of those people that just ‘can’t be bothered’ to save a couple of hundred pounds.

A special layer technology will help wholesale delivery of these new business broadband services.

Tom Williams, Operations Director at Be commented: “By partnering with Fluidata, Be is now able to offer a wholesale platform for the entire telecoms industry, particularly to carriers engaged in providing services to businesses. Since our products and services routinely outperform the competition, and offers speeds of up to 24 Mb/s down and 2.6 Mb/s upload, this venture means that Be can provide a true alternative to larger competitors.”

The ADSL2+ technology is available at around 1,200 exchanges nationwide and is being rolled out to more and more exchanges in the following years. Be have made as solid name for themselves as providers of fast, reliable and low price broadband services.

The high speeds offered by Be will place them in a great position to offer business broadband that can really compete in a busy marketplace. We hope the same great level of service Be has shown its residential customers will extend in this new partnership.

There’s been plenty of talk as far back as 2006 that the broadband market is now saturated, and that everyone who wants to have a broadband account has now purchased one, give or a take a few stragglers or those only recently connected to an ADSL or cable service. However, a popular online comparison site has found that around 30% of its visitors are still first time broadband buyers who have never had a high speed net connection before.

There’s also news this week that research published by telecommunications regulator Ofcom that around a fifth of all adults who aren’t already online are likely to be signing up in the next six months, either through fixed line ADSL or the ever popular mobile broadband services offered by companies like Vodaphone and 3.

The question is, with so many new users coming online every month, are these new users finding out the right information at the point of sale? Here’s the rundown of three top providers according to the poll:

· Virgin Media state that they are just ‘faster’ than its three biggest competitors, which is true enough but doesn’t describe much of the service as a whole or provide any differences between their cable service and normal ADSL.

· BT let’s visitors compare deals with 4 other providers

· TalkTalk makes selective attacks at some of its rivals who offer specific services that TalkTalk can beat them on.

Considering all the big names are intent on fighting each other over services that many new users don’t even understand it’s no surprise that many people find their first broadband choice confusing and wind up with a contract that’s far from the best value around.

Another problem is that unlike going to the local shop and comparing the prices on a range of products, consumers cant browse through different broadband services easily – especially those who don’t really understand what the internet has to offer.

This is where broadband comparison sites really come in handy. They provide new users with a virtual high street, laying out all the potential deals to customers with no pre-conceived motives of a sale. When users compare broadband they can find out exactly what they’re getting and how it compares to every other deal – not just the deals that the provider thinks they can beat on features.

“One our most important features is our strict independence from online providers. We’re dedicated to bringing the facts of every deal out there – good or bad,” Said Charles Johnson, Marketing Executive of UKCheapBroadband.

“We try to appeal to new users by offering up as much genuine and original information as possible on just about every aspect of the online world, from exactly what providers mean they say ‘high speed broadband’ to how to protect yourself online with security software. Providing transparent and helpful information is our number one priority.”

If you’re going to be considering changing broadband deals in the next week, Be has an excellent offer available: sign up with the company by June 30th and you’ll receive £48 worth of Amazon vouchers to spend on anything you like.

While we normally don’t recommend voucher deals as they limit where you can shop, Amazon has such a huge range of products it’s unlikely you won’t find something you need a the store, even if it’s a very early Christmas present! Be had previous offered around £20 of vouchers for signing up, so this is a great deal if you’re able to switch soon.

Of course, signing up for a Broadband provider simply for vouchers isn’t recommended, as you will be stuck on a contract with a monthly fee. However, Be offer some of the best broadband in the country and are persistently rated high in customer satisfaction surveys. The company use ADSL2+ technology to provide speeds of up to 24 Mbps on their most expensive package, with uploads speeds as high as 2.5 Mbps.

Thanks to these speeds and incredibly low latency levels, Be is popular amongst people that need superfast internet such as those enjoying HD video streaming and online gamers. However, Be also offers entry level packages.

Be Cheap Broadband Deals

The Be Value deal offers up to 8 Mbps for only £13.50 a month, including unlimited download and 24 hour technical support. This deal is actually more fully featured than the ‘premium’ packages from some other UK ISPs. If you’re looking for even faster speeds, Be Unlimited and Be Pro are available at £17.50 and £21.50 respectively.

Heavy downloaders have found a home at Be with many customers reporting that while the company have a fair use policy, they don’t engage in the traffic shaping or bandwidth throttling that companies like BT have been reported to use in the past.

Be Voucher Code

To take advantage of the voucher offer when signing up, enter the code 24OfferBTC1 when finishing your online transaction.

Although users want the service they receive to be of a higher quality, many of them don’t actually know much about their service. Around a third of users are not sure of the originally advertised speed of their broadband package – one of the most important things to consider when choosing a broadband service.

The survey showed the disparity between average advertised speeds and real life speeds as being nearly double, with the UK average speeds of 4.2 Mb a far cry from the average advertised connection of 8 Mbps.

The survey was conducted by broadband site uSwitch. Communication officer at the site, Jason Glynn stated: “The Government and providers need to step up a gear and set out a bold new blueprint for Britain’s future. Virgin Media and BT have already made strides in this direction – the question is whether other providers will be following suit and whether all customers will be able to benefit equally, regardless of where they live.”

The best way to avoid disappointment with your connection is research before you buy. ISPs can run speed tests on your line to check how fast your internet can go and 3G providers should be able to give you an estimate on the strength of the signal in your area.

There are also ways to receive the best out of the speed you already receive such as switching to a wired network rather than using a wireless router, which are prone to interference.

“Technology has raced ahead and people are able to access services online that could previously only be dreamt of,” said Glynn, “the only thing holding broadband Britain back is speed.”

If you are looking for a fast broadband connection, it may be that you can still go with a cheap broadband deal, however it would pay to compare your options first, to ensure you get the best deal for you.

That solution is Satellite Broadband. Once considered a poor choice by almost everyone – including us, we admit – due to its expensive setup, high bandwidth costs, bad latency and unreliable performance. However, the broadband terrain is changing quickly and for some people who have little other option, satellite is slowly becoming a more appealing option, if you can afford it.

Avanti is a UK based satellite broadband company that has been providing satellite access across Europe for years, but the company will soon be launching a brand new satellite which will reduce costs of the services while making them faster at the same time. The new satellite will be able to offer some impressive speeds and while it won’t totally reduce some of the problems of the service like the latency, it could well be an option for those excluded from traditional methods of broadband.

During an interview with Top 10 Broadband, a spokeman from Avanti commented although there’s a very high price for set up of the services this cost may be reduced when more and more people taking up the service. With initial setup currently suggest at around £400, Avanti pointed towards US satellite broadband provider Wild Blue who have been able to reduce their own costs thank to increased take up. Avanti will cover over double the amount of potential customers as Wild Blue, so we could see more sensible prices available soon.

Some customers in Scotland have also been able to take advantage of government subsidies to reduce the cost and the British government may well adopt a similar method when the full Digital Britain report is released this month.

Avanti also promise broadband caps of around 5GB a month, a similar amount of data allowance that you might find in a mobile broadband contract. Obviously this isn’t enough for heavy downloaders but if you live in a remote enough area to consider satellite the most important consideration is having a connection rather than a lot of download bandwidth.

Avanti haven’t announced proper initial prices of monthly costs for the service yet, but it’s clear the satellite broadband is finally taking off. If you can get any other type of cheap broadband service in your area it’ll probably be far cheaper and more reliable than the satellite option. If not, satellite might be something to consider, especially if Avanti make good on reducing installation charges when more people take up the service.

Avanti have recently been given funding from the European Space Agency to research ‘Hercules’, a satellite that would be capable of speeds of up to 50 Mbps.

BT isn’t the only ISP who throttle users without giving them clear indication or warning, but BT have entered the spotlight as the BBC themselves question BT’s traffic shaping policy. There hasn’t been much response from BT so far other than the typical response claiming they make the bandwidth cuts “in order to optimise the experience for all customers” but the company have mentioned they are in talks with the BBC about the issue. It’s nice to see bigger companies getting involved though, even if they only do so when the capping affects their own potential to gain customers.

Check the Fair Usage Policy commonplace with cheap unlimited broadband deals

Fair use policies are certainly something that many consumers feel aren’t regulated enough in the current broadband climate, and it’s easy to see why with companies often cutting speeds of bandwidth without giving clear indications as to limits, times or what constitutes ‘fair’. It’s examples like this that only further prove that we need better consumer laws when it comes to what speeds ISPs provide.

With Lord Carter’s Digital Report promising ‘2 Mbps for all’ being released this month, the eventual cost of the providing broadband across the digital divide has become a hot topic, with Whitehall paying out £750 million of the total costs for the scheme which are estimated at around £2.5 billion – a fairly large spend for any government especially on something that will only affect a relatively small percentage of the population.

A popular broadband news site has committed some research to the subject and one of the cheapest solutions for inner cities could well be Wi-Fi. It sounds obvious of course, but it’s surprising just how little decent Wi-Fi coverage there is in UK cities, even in the capital. Wi-Fi has many advantages over other connections because it doesn’t involve digging up roads which can be incredibly costly and time consuming in busy neighbourhoods. Unlike other forms of wireless internet like Mobile Broadband and Satellite, Wi-Fi is far cheaper to set up and doesn’t incur huge bandwidth costs making it ideal for urban communities.

The result of all this is that broadband can be provided to large groups of people for very cheap. This is particularly useful for inner city areas because many of the residents survive on low incomes and are unable to afford more expensive broadband options. The only real disadvantage of Wi-Fi is the range, which means it’s not cost effective in areas where population density isn’t high ruling it out for rural locations and even small towns.

Community Wi-Fi networks have already been put in place in select areas across the country. The London Borough of Islington created one over five years ago. Funded by the local council, it provides broadband access for over 3,000 residents, many of whom would not otherwise be able to access or afford the luxury of a broadband service.

Manager of the Islington project, Andrew Barker commented: “Providing free external internet access along what’s now known as the Tech Mile has been a huge success for Islington Council. That’s why we’ve continued to build on the project and are now targeting service delivery into the homes of social housing residents using broadband over powerline.”

However, despite the success of the project, other boroughs and cities across the country have been slow to adopt similar plans and take advantage of Wi-Fi. Hopefully Islington and other smaller scale projects set up to bridge the divide will be seen as an example to others and other local councils will embark on their own community projects.