Esat BT throttling users over the limt

Little-Devil

L31mr0d wrote: »

wait, what does this mean? How can my usage go below 100GB's? Also what do you mean by a rolling 30 day period?

I'm not to sure to be honest, it seems they will monitor accounts they throttle and once they go under the 100G they will stop throttling but if you go over the 100G its back to throttle again i think. Unless you can wait say four weeks, i think anyone who has hit 100G maybe better of cancelling in the long term.

Cult, you could be correct on the cost to revamp the network but i doubt BT would struggle that much. They have probably decided to take the hardline with so many taking the pi** with downloads. I still love to know how someone could use so much within four weeks.

Phlann

Phlann wrote: »

What's the wait time for dublin city centre like? Yer man said three weeks but I got the impression that maybe that was just a pessimistic estimate to prevent people ringing up and whinging when they're not instantly transferred across.

Sorry to repeat the question but has anybody else in D2 made the switch to smart recently? And if so could you let me know if the above estimate is accurate?

Thanks

PotBelly

Clocking down by a gig a day is totally absurd. I was about 190 gig over the limit and the chap told me around the 20th of april. I am hoping that it will be sooner.

As soon as I am back up and running it will be 99 gig a month from now on and if they throttle me again I am switching to a different supplier. The reason I wont switch now is that I believe this is a once off to restrict serial downloaders and I could not afford the downtime of switching

Little-Devil

If everyone starts that then they will change it to 90G and so on :-).

Blindpew

I have always thought that if everyone ignored the 30gb cap and used the service as they can in normal countries that they would have abolished it years ago. They couldn't throttle everyone. If their infrastructure couldn't sustain that sort of usage they would have improved it by now. As long as people keep obeying their caps they won't improve anything.

PotBelly

Whats the point in having such fast speeds and not being able to use them. They want you to stream video, play online etc etc.

I am restricted to 128k and my web browing is plenty fast. If that was all you were using the internet for, then why are you paying so much for BB.

This whole situation boggles the mind. I have been exceeding my cap since 2005 and it is only when I move to 3mg last month they throttle. This is making me angry as it will put me out no end to change provider and that is the only way to get them back for doing this.They know this and would prefer to loose the downloaders so that they can keep ripping off the sheep who use their 3 mg BB connection as an E-Penis and dont utilise to its full capacity.

The analogy is buying an Icecream machine that is capable of producing 300 ice-creams a month but you only make 30 ice creams. Think of it 270 icecreams sitting there with your name on them. mmmmmm

Phlann

By the way guys, I wouldn't get too hung up on this figure of 100 gigs down.

I'd actually forgotten this until a few moments ago but they throttled my connection back in February too. When I rang them up they said it was because I'd downloaded nearly 80gigs.

So what does that tell us? Ehhh... I don't know.

L31mr0d

well i'll be moving over to their business package at the first chance if I can (can you if you don't have a business?). I was only sticking with their residential package because I thought the cap was only a formality as i've been at least quadrupling my cap since '99 and never got charged/throttled once. Ha, and to think I was actually restraining myself for the last month until I found out if the cap was getting increased to 80GB's, I didn't even know that usage page existed until I read this thread

Oh and i'm not so naive as to think I don't deserve it. You get what you pay for and i've been paying for a service with a cap and expecting to not have one. Of all the BB providers i've used and had experience with in work, BT is still by far the best.

Sqaull20

Blindpew wrote: »

I never realised that so many arse licking sheep frequented these message boards.

Exactly, should be no limit for the prices we way...

2008 and here we are on a 3mb connection, while Czechs get 24mb, no limit for €21 a month...

I was in Gran Canaria for 2 months ( tiny little desert Island) 6 years ago on a 2mb connection for €30 ffs...

If they throttle me, Im going over to those other shower of useless feckers Eircom...

PotBelly

It's funny

Usually my upload is only around the 350k mark instead of the promised 500k

But now I am throttled the upload speed is exactly 128k every time.:p

Oh why cant my speeds be this exact to the terms and conditions when not throttled:D

ongarite

190GB a month download. Thats taking the piss now!

zilog_jones

I think it would be safe to say that no household-market ISP could provide all of their customers the full advertised bandwidth 24/7, due to contention and other bottlenecks. As adoption of broadband increases this is only going to become more of an issue.

Some people in the industry have serious concerns about the state of the intfrastructure - this does not really suggest a very hopeful future (I know it's about the UK but I'm sure we have similar if not worse problems).

PotBelly wrote:

This whole situation boggles the mind...They know this and would prefer to loose the downloaders so that they can keep ripping off the sheep who use their 3 mg BB connection as an E-Penis and dont utilise to its full capacity.

Just because you have a 3Mb/s connection doesn't mean you have to - or are even allowed to - use it non-stop.

Here's an analogy for you: You buy a BMW M5. Its maximum power output is 507 bhp. Yes you can reach this max power with the car as it is, but if you were achieving that all the time the engine et al would not last very long, and you'd be either (i) dead or (ii) disqualified from driving. OK that's not the best analogy...

Your analogy is wrong though. It would be more like this:
You can produce 384k ice creams a second, but you are limited to a guideline amount of 30G ice creams worth of supplies. You could try and acquire more supplies, but it is not guaranteed the supplier can reach this demand, especially if many people did it. NO ICE CREAM IS WASTED. This is a very efficient industry! If everyone tried to get more than 30G ice creams a month from this ice cream vendor, the supplier would not be able to keep up, and if everyone in the country did the same the ice cream industry would be bolloxed.

30GB is not necessarily a target!

BT Ireland are essentially doing what BT's "Unlimited" package in the UK allows, except at all times instead of just at peak times:

The Fair Usage Policy is designed to ensure that the service received by the vast majority of our customers is not negatively impacted because of extremely heavy usage by a very small minority of customers. This is why BT continuously monitors network performance and may restrict the speed available to very heavy users during peak time. This applies to customers on all Options.


Note if you are a heavy user we will only restrict your speed. Service will not be stopped, so you will still be able to upload and download. We will not impose any restrictions outside of peak times. Only a very small minority of customers will ever be affected by this (less than 1%).

Such policies are so vaguely written that they can decide whatever their real limits are and who they deem as "heavy users", i.e. they can just make it up as they're going along.

Bohrio

This is weird... i think my posts must be invisible to everyone else but me...

I will repeat again. Once a customer reaches a certain amount (let´s say 100 gb) he/she will be throttled down to 128/128 kbps, then, as soon as the usage goes below 100 gb the line will be back to normal. If you go over 100 gb then again you will be throttled.

For customers who have slightly gone over 100 gb it shouldnt take long to get back to normal for other, well, just do the math...

They will look one month back that´s all.

And I will say it again, once more and for the last time, if your usage shows 0 bytes CALL BT TECH SUPPORT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Now, dont go around thinking I am safe because my cap is nowhere close to 100 gb, because that´s just nowadays, but who knows tomorrow.

Blindpew

Surly though if the Ice cream van was running out of ice cream everynight on an estate he bring more ice cream the next night or get a bigger van. If the demand is only for one van load then he sticks to one van. If people weren't afraid to use their internet connections there would be more demand for bandwidth and the isps would have to provide more ice cream vans. I want those other 270 ice creams.

Bohrio

Phlann wrote: »

By the way guys, I wouldn't get too hung up on this figure of 100 gigs down.

I'd actually forgotten this until a few moments ago but they throttled my connection back in February too. When I rang them up they said it was because I'd downloaded nearly 80gigs.

So what does that tell us? Ehhh... I don't know.

I am afraid they werent. BT have only started this last week

Its pure math... if they would have throttled you down to 128 kbps in freb your max usage per day would have been 1 gb per day, x 30 = 30 gbs... anyway believe me, you werent... probably you are sharing the line with another heavy user....

Sqaull20

Exactly, should be no limit for the prices we way...

Show me one provider who offers unlimited download for a similar price in Ireland please, remember no caps no fair usage policy..

I was in Gran Canaria for 2 months ( tiny little desert Island) 6 years ago on a 2mb connection for €30 ffs...

In Spain (Telefónica) is actually one of the countries that as they offer no caps they can only guarantee 10% of the total speed.

If they throttle me, Im going over to those other shower of useless feckers Eircom... .

Eircom will charge you… would you be happier if BT would have charged you? That can surely be arranged! Just call them and let them know!

You will be throttled if you reach the cap limit...

PotBelly

Usually my upload is only around the 350k mark instead of the promised 500k

Your download should be 384 kbps not 500k…

Oh why cant my speeds be this exact to the terms and conditions when not throttled

They are, but, just so you know, on the terms and conditions it clearly says: “Speeds are not guaranteed”

zilog_jones

Blindpew wrote: »

Surly though if the Ice cream van was running out of ice cream everynight on an estate he bring more ice cream the next night or get a bigger van. If the demand is only for one van load then he sticks to one van. If people weren't afraid to use their internet connections there would be more demand for bandwidth and the isps would have to provide more ice cream vans. I want those other 270 ice creams.

I don't like this ice cream analogy any more

They can't just scale up their infrastructure on a whim, and it's clearly a minority who are downloading 100GB+ a month. For most people the current system is more than adequate. While you are still the minority, they're not going to offer an "unlimited" package (which will still have T&Cs anyway). It's much easier to offer such packages in larger markets such as the UK.

Your download should be 384 kbps not 500k…

And then you have protocol overheads and all that, so 350kb/s is quite the respectable speed.

Phlann

Bohrio wrote: »

I am afraid they werent. BT have only started this last week

Its pure math... if they would have throttled you down to 128 kbps in freb your max usage per day would have been 1 gb per day, x 30 = 30 gbs... anyway believe me, you werent... probably you are sharing the line with another heavy user....

I'm just repeating what customer care told me when I rang. BUT, I've got the timeline wrong. Just checked my sent mail and found the email I sent to a mate complaining about my download speeds being throttled and my connection dropping out. It's dated 23rd of January.

The guy on the support line informed me that my connection problems were the result of me 'significantly exceeding' my cap for the month, quoting a figure of something like 78 gigs (I think, could be wrong on that but I remember he sounded surprised!) and he said that it would clear up on the first of February, which it did. That's why I was expecting it to clear up on the 1st of April this time.

So I dunno...

SeanW

My advice to people who consistently exceed their limits by "pisstake" levels would be to see if you can get BT Business Broadband.

http://business.btireland.ie/bb_internet_bb.html

It claims to have an unlimited usage up to 3MB package (will go to 7.6Mbps during or before June).

L31mr0d

Bohrio wrote: »

They are, but, just so you know, on the terms and conditions it clearly says: “Speeds are not guaranteed”

Bohrio, do you work for BT? Just wondering what are the restrictions on residential users getting a business line?

Cabaal

L31mr0d wrote: »

Bohrio, do you work for BT? Just wondering what are the restrictions on residential users getting a business line?

Many years ago when I got a 1MB business line with BT I had to pay a 500e deposit to get the business line as I was a home user, it seems it depends what account manager you deal with when it comes to ordering.

To be honest you could just reg a business name and you'd be flying

Its worth noting that while you get your own account manager and you'd expect services to be better I still had to lodge two complaints with them regarding billing issues and provisioning issues, both were resolved and in one case I even got them to pay my eircom line rental for a three month period (long story behind that )

The trick to it all is don't act the prat when dealing with them, keep calm and have a reasonable object to your complaint

L31mr0d

I contacted BT this morning and they said as a residential user I will ONLY be able to get a business line if I either a) have my own business, or b) work for a business that will register my line under their company name.

I could probably get the company I work for to do this as I usually remotely connect to and from my work pc to home but i'd rather avoid this hassle should I ever leave the company.

Has anyone here set up a business line at home without owning a business?

Blindpew

I knew there would be a catch to getting a business line. If it were as easy as previously stated in this thread everyone would be on a business line. I also wonder what the upload speed is with a business line. Unless it was on par with the download speed it wouldn't be much addition for private torrent sites. With a fixed ip address one could be banned permenently on private sites. With a dynamic ip address all you have to do is restart the router and register a new e-mail with hotmail and away you go. One gets banned from private trackers unless you keep your upload ratio at at least half your download. With the current upload speed we have it is very hard to do this.

Cabaal

Myself and others I know have had Bt business lines since around 2001 onwards, they do give fixed IP's and only once did somebody I know have issues when their IP was dos attacked and BT had to issue a new IP as the line was unusable...they will not normally do this.

I know 100GB's were downloaded on one particular line and nobody was ever contacted regarding its usage (the bandwidth on the line was maxed out 24/7 for months on end), additionally uptime was pretty good, I had mine for 18 months and only experienced about 1hour downtime in all that time

I'd imagine BT have made it more strict to get a business line since they dropped the price, you have to remember when I got my 1MB business line back in 2003/2004 it may not have been the fastest but it was truely uncapped but it cost me 110e a month which was outside of the price range for must home users.

BT later dropped the price to 45e a month and upped the speed to 2MB, so at that price and speed it would be more attractive to home users.

The other benefit of a BT Buisness LLU line is BT can do a ULMP unbundle which turns the line into a data only line, the benefit of this is yu don't have to keep paying eircom line rental...however you will no longer have any voice services on the line.

If you want to do a ULMP unbundle do it at the beginning because if you do it after your line is first provisioned you'd be looking at in excess of 60 days downtime, also from start to finish a new order with BT can normally take upto 30 days...if eircom don't cause any problems.

I'm not sure about BT Business current order forms, but this is the relevant section on the last one I saw


I hope people find this helpful

L31mr0d

Ok so I rang BT this morning inquiring about getting my residential line moved over to a business line. Luckily my work said its fine to use their reg number to get the line. So I shoot off an email to them telling them to go ahead and then I receive a call asking me why I want to move and I said I wasn't happy with the 30GB cap and a static IP would be useful. He then said "oh we don't cap people, I know it says it when you are buying it but there is no procedure here to enforce it" I then tell him that i've been throttled to which he says "then something else is going on, have you contacted tech? Usually when people get throttled it has nothing to do with their cap but means there is some technical issues on the line and they will throttle heavy users"

I just said i'd prefer to just move over to a business line to avoid this throttling in the future, to which he said he'd contact tech and see what the real reason for the throttling is and then get back to me. It will be interesting to see what he has to say about all this anyway as I half suspected there was something else up at BT.

briantwin

I just said i'd prefer to just move over to a business line to avoid this throttling in the future, to which he said he'd contact tech and see what the real reason for the throttling is and then get back to me. It will be interesting to see what he has to say about all this anyway as I half suspected there was something else up at BT.

Yeah im fairly sure he'll just tell you exactly what technical support are saying. Just because one department knows about something doesn't mean every single one does. Mostly because his department wouldn't deal with any customers with caps so it wouldn't be pertinent for him to know. But i'd be interested to know what he comes back with. Keep us updated.

smellslikeshoes

Doubt he will call back in fairness, The throttling seems to be a quite new thing so he probably doesn't know anything about it.

Sqaull20

L31mr0d wrote: »

Ok so I rang BT this morning inquiring about getting my residential line moved over to a business line. Luckily my work said its fine to use their reg number to get the line. So I shoot off an email to them telling them to go ahead and then I receive a call asking me why I want to move and I said I wasn't happy with the 30GB cap and a static IP would be useful. He then said "oh we don't cap people, I know it says it when you are buying it but there is no procedure here to enforce it" I then tell him that i've been throttled to which he says "then something else is going on, have you contacted tech? Usually when people get throttled it has nothing to do with their cap but means there is some technical issues on the line and they will throttle heavy users"

I just said i'd prefer to just move over to a business line to avoid this throttling in the future, to which he said he'd contact tech and see what the real reason for the throttling is and then get back to me. It will be interestingto see what he has to say about all this anyway as I half suspected there was something else up at BT.

If they keep messing you around, then tell them to shove it....

Friend of mine has been with Irish Broadband for over a year now ( dsl 3mb package ) and he loves it, no cap, speed is always 340 kb/s when downloading and he has been going over 150gb nearly every month, sometimes more...


http://www.irishbroadband.ie/products.php

Im with BT at the moment too and usually do about 60gb to 100gb a month and the minute they throttle me/ complain, im gone..

I was perfectly happy with eircom, doing the same downloads, but BT said they could give me 3mb for the price of Eircom 2mb so I went with them..

I might go back to Eircom or just go to irishbroadband, depending who give me the better deal...

Eircom will be upgrading 3mb lines to 7.6mb in June, so I may go just before then

Fighting Irish

Maybe you guys are having line problems, seriously i'd easily download over 100gb per month on BT 3mb and have never been trottled, or else i've never noticed it

Ciaran500

Fighting Irish wrote: »

Maybe you guys are having line problems, seriously i'd easily download over 100gb per month on BT 3mb and have never been trottled, or else i've never noticed it

They only started this month.

Surprised to see this


Now, do I still want to move to UPC.:pac:

Cabaal

L31mr0d wrote: »

....I then tell him that i've been throttled to which he says "then something else is going on, have you contacted tech? Usually when people get throttled it has nothing to do with their cap but means there is some technical issues on the line and they will throttle heavy users"

Your talking to a billing person who most likely has not received any technical training within there job, its likely they'll loose commission if you move from a home service to business as the business sales agents are in a different dept as far as I know.

Might explain why the rep doesn't want you to move packages.