In the small print of many broadband deals which claim to be unlimited, you will find a condition that says your broadband connection will be subject to the terms of a fair usage policy. If you attempt to read these densely worded documents you might come away more confused than ever, although it is definitely important to have an understanding of their implications when you sign up for any broadband deal. In general there are many areas in which fair usage policies from different broadband providers cover the same ground and so here we will look at the general requirements which they enforce, although there are variations depending on your choice of package.
A fair usage policy will temper the unlimited nature of any broadband deal by requiring that your internet activity adheres to rules which best suit not just the provider but also the other customers. A fair use policy will usually request that between the hours of 6pm and 11pm you do not use your internet connection for any data intensive tasks. In other words, avoid downloading huge files, streaming high definition videos and playing hours of online games in the evening. This is considered to be peak time, give or take a couple of hours depending on the policy and as such this is the period during which there are the most significant number of other users online. During the off peak hours you will generally be allowed to use your connection as you see fit, although in some cases an unlimited connection may have a data cap fixed in gigabytes (GB) at a level which most people will never reach, designed to catch out the heaviest users.
You may be wondering why broadband providers would advertise their connections as unlimited and then seemingly contradict this statement with the fair usage policy. The main reason is that they want to provide the fairest, most consistent internet service to all of their customers. During the busiest periods when everyone is attempting to get online at home, the local exchanges can get clogged up as everyone consumes data. If there are a select few people who are downloading large files they can affect the speed at which simple web pages load for other users and so upset the balance. In some cases the providers will actively limit the speed of all connections during peak periods artificially in order to provide a consistent level of service and although this may seem slightly annoying in some cases, it is the only way to make sure that everyone has an equal chance to enjoy the internet.
A broadband provider will not typically remonstrate a user for contravening the terms of a fair usage policy if they do so infrequently. However, if you do use your connection excessively during peak times you could be hit with a number of consequences. Sometimes you will get a warning from your provider to let you know that it has detected your excessive peak period usage and in other cases you will find that your provider will begin to limit your connection without giving you any warning. This all depends on the terms of the policy, so it is worth familiarising yourself with what could happen if you are found to be in breach of the rules. The good news is that only the very heaviest internet users are penalised under the terms of a fair usage policy, so in general the average user will be able to enjoy an unlimited service in the truest sense of the word.