Has anyone ever been contacted about high daily usage on NTL?

Infini

I'm posting this up to anyone with NTL. I recieved this letter today about my high usage on NTL BB.

While my own usage is around 30GB or so a month I usually download files in sizes of several GB and within a 24 hour period and have also recently been using it for 1 or 2 days strait on getting some old TV shows off the internet. What i'm wondering is has anyone else on boards recieved a similar warning letter from NTL on their high daily usage. Also while I'm at it has anyone recently had trouble with their NTL broadband in the Dublin 7 area out of interest?

(Note: if anyone from NTL is reading this I'll be reducing my own usage within the next few days anyway. )

that's actually a very fair letter, doesn't seem to be chastising you, or complaining, jsut asking you to cut down, i'd say it's quite effective too.

Kernel

Yeah I have heard they are doing this lately. There service is overpriced compared to the latest offerings. What are they going to do if you continue to break the cap? Cancel your subscription? Grand, we'll just go to smart... faster, and cheaper.

Kernel

Kernel wrote:

Yeah I have heard they are doing this lately. There service is overpriced compared to the latest offerings. What are they going to do if you continue to break the cap? Cancel your subscription? Grand, we'll just go to smart... faster, and cheaper.

Never thought i'd see the day when people would be saying this about ntl.

Bear in mind cable broadband is capible of going many times faster than adsl's maximum.
I would not rule out ntl upgrading their speeds.

Infini

Well at least NTL will be sold to someone within the next month and that 1GB a day might hopefully go out the window. Their service is pretty good but 1GB a day is too restrictive in the long term or if I'm downloading large files. I wouldn't want to move but if the speeds don't improve by the time my contract is up I'll probably move to smart or someone else.

kin9pin

I reckon I'll have a letter waiting for me then
I'm pretty much the same as you Infini, downloads of roughly 25-35GB pm but I could download virtually nothing for a few days then go mad at the weekend. Not too bad though, just have to spread it out a bit.
tbh, I can't really see them doing anything before they're sold.

Jonnie_Onion

Heh,

I was within the Cap, until I went over double it in Feb and March.

Guess I better reign it in!

CyberGhost

damn we just can't get a brake

causal

Hey Infini,

[conspiracy theory]
I wonder if someone from ntl is monitoring boards.ie, remember the recent thread about usage and (iirc) you posted your DUMeter readings. I wonder if they got wind of it?
[/conspiracy theory]

If you ware watching ntl, I want:
1) Substantial increase in download rate
2) Substantial increase in upload rate
3) No daily caps, at leaast 60GB.

- Or else I'm off to Smart for 2Mbps & free line rental, rather than giving ye €59 (€35+€24 : bb+tv) per month, I'll give them €35 and stick your tv too.


causal

XT_Dweezil

I got the letter as well today.

It isn´t my fault that the files are so big :rolleyes:

julius

Are the users of NTLBB capable of viewing statistics of their broadband usage like us DSL users???

causal

Not that I know of, I haven't seen any kind of 'Your download stats are...'
Maybe that's why they're lenient.

causal

m1ke

Yeah I got a letter as well. Had two particularly busy months dl'ing 60gb a month whereas i'm usually more in the 1-10gb area. Not particularly bothered by the letter seeing as I can just go to a competitor if I need to.

Infini

m1ke wrote:

Yeah I got a letter as well. Had two particularly busy months dl'ing 60gb a month whereas i'm usually more in the 1-10gb area. Not particularly bothered by the letter seeing as I can just go to a competitor if I need to.

I know the feeling. Don't know how it disrupts the network but I've gotten some pretty large files in the last two weeks. Strange though is that I asked about this 1GB allowance before and they said It didn't matter as long as you kept within 30GB (although I might be nearly 40GB sometimes) and also why are they sending these things out now when they're about to sell up. In anycase if I have to I might switch to IBB. At least they have symetrical up and download speeds and are upgrading to 2MB soon anyway.

lee_baby_simms

m1ke wrote:

Yeah I got a letter as well. Had two particularly busy months dl'ing 60gb a month whereas i'm usually more in the 1-10gb area. Not particularly bothered by the letter seeing as I can just go to a competitor if I need to.

exactly.

i got the letter too. i suppose i cant complain cos i'm not getting charged for going over but i just dont like how vague and blurry the lines are regarding this issue.

if the need arises can you break out of a 12 month contract after say 4 months?

Infini

lee_baby_simms wrote:

exactly.

i got the letter too. i suppose i cant complain cos i'm not getting charged for going over but i just dont like how vague and blurry the lines are regarding this issue.

if the need arises can you break out of a 12 month contract after say 4 months?

I think it's E60 to quit early or something. Also what exactly would they do for those that don't listen and why 1GB. Thats way too small for a "heavy user". At least 30GB a month can be agreeable but I can use up 1GB in less than 90 minutes for crying out loud!

johnsmith

I think that a monthly cap is a much better idea than a daily cap, anybody can go over 1 gig occasionaly, even 30gig/month would be much fairer.

julius

A daily cap IMHO is stupid for a ISP's to impose.

Its designed to stop people choking the system at peak times...but if you download 2GBytes overnight they should be thanking you FFS.

Just my opinion on the issue.

causal

NTL recently updated the User Policy and there's no mention of monthly 30GB, it's replaced by:

"Normal use" of the service is defined as up to 1 gigabyte downstream of data transfer daily"

Notice that this is downstream, no mention of upstream.

And from the Technical FAQ

Are there any restrictions on the data that can be transferred?
The service is currently restricted to 1GB per day. This restriction will only be enforced where individual users consistantly exceed the 1GB per day limit.

I also noted from that FAQ:

What client side services will I be allowed to run, given you will be allocating a dynamic IP address?

Due to the large number of possible client side services available we are unable to produce a comprehensive list. You will not be allowed to run web servers (HTTP) or ftp servers (FTP). Also note that we reserve the right to stop other servers if they cause disruption to the cable modem system.

But this is out of sync with the recently updated User Policy which says servers are OK:

17. Servers
1. You are solely responsible for the setup and security of all servers that you may run on your PC. You are also responsible for all traffic that may pass through your PC. ntl cannot be held liable for any losses or damages that may occur as a result of a compromise of your server. Please note that your account may be subject to immediate suspension or disconnection without notice, if any security breaches do occur or any server causes any degradation in network performance. You should also note that running servers on your PC may cause your own connection to operate in a less than optimal manner.
2. Webservers: see Para 8, Websites
3. Remote Access: All remote access ( FTP; SSH ; PC Anywhere etc) must be password protected & the address must not be publicly advertised.
4. Game: If the game in question has a password/IP access restriction option this must be used. Your IP address must not be publicly advertised on Gaming sites etc.
5. Email:
6. You must ensure that you do not further the sending of Unsolicited Bulk Email by others. This applies to both material that originates on your system and also third party material that might pass through it. This includes but is not limited to a prohibition on running an "open mail relay", ie a machine which accepts mail from unauthorized or unknown senders and forwards it onward to a destination outside of your machine or network. If your machine does relay mail, on an authorized basis, then it must record its passing through your system by means of an appropriate "Received" line.
7. Other: You may run other servers but be aware that ntl reserve the right to restrict access to them should they cause network problems or should we receive complaints.
8. We may, at our discretion, run manual or automatic systems to determine your compliance with our User Policy (e.g. scanning for "open mail relays"). You are deemed to have granted permission for this limited intrusion onto your network or machine.
9. Please be aware that ntl do not offer any DNS services, e.g. Domain Name Redirection. The ntlworld service is based on dynamic IP addressing and you must not specify IP addresses (other than DNS servers) in the network settings for your internet connection.
Please note that should we receive any complaints about any server that you may be running that your Internet access may be suspended without notice pending further investigation.

causal

carrotcake

i got the letter myself too. two weeks ago i downloaded over a gig a few days running, other than that not much gets downloaded

causal

johnsmith wrote:

I think that a monthly cap is a much better idea than a daily cap, anybody can go over 1 gig occasionaly, even 30gig/month would be much fairer.

Agreed. It's a pain to be bothered with "what have I downloaded today", oh I'll have to download that tomorrow. That's not part of an enjoyable internet experience.

Smart are looking better and better every day.
€35 - 2Mbps, no cap, free line rental. - Are you listenting NTL?

causal

Infini

This is just speculation but if they're gonna change their User Policy like the UK's one and send letters like this then why didn't they upgrade their speeds while they're at it. And I bet whoever buy's out NTL Ireland within the next month will change them again.

I must not move to IBB, I must not move to IBB! :mad:

causal

Yeah - we're getting handed out Stick - but no Carrot !!

'Smart'ing from the cap letters

causal

kin9pin

causal wrote:

Agreed. It's a pain to be bothered with "what have I downloaded today", oh I'll have to download that tomorrow. That's not part of an enjoyable internet experience.

Smart are looking better and better every day.
€35 - 2Mbps, no cap, free line rental. - Are you listenting NTL?

causal

Smart may advertise "No Cap", but they've still covered themselves with this:
"Do Smart Broadband have download or upload limits?

There is no limits on the amount of data that can be downloaded or uploaded however users whose usage is deemed excessive on a regular basis will be contacted and restrictions will be used if the activity persists"

......which is exactly what NTL are doing at the moment.

oceanclub

kin9pin wrote:

There is no limits on the amount of data that can be downloaded or uploaded however users whose usage is deemed excessive on a regular basis will be contacted and restrictions will be used if the activity persists"

Exactly. This sounds great in theory - but remember IOL No Limits? Which turned out to be IOL, Er, Limits. I'd rather have it in black and white. Or at least dark grey. Speaking of which, is NTL's cap only based on download, and not upload?

P.

kin9pin

Download only. tbh 1GB down per day is ok.....well I can live with it.

causal

kin9pin wrote:

however users whose usage is deemed excessive on a regular basis will be contacted and restrictions will be used if the activity persists"

Good shout kin9pin. I think that's actually worse than ntl - at least ntl give you a figure to work with, i.e. 1GB per day.

Bah humbug :mad:

causal

causal

kin9pin wrote:

Download only. tbh 1GB down per day is ok.....well I can live with it.

I was agreeing initally - but what if you want to download Fedora or whatever - the dvd images are a couple of GB. Well, I suppose in fairness it'd be occasional when I'd do that, but I'd rather 30GB per month than 1GB per day.

causal
"I'll gladly pay you Tuesday for a hamburger today"

Nietzschean

actually i'm happy to see these letters go out, mainly cause i'm actually experencing contention of late and would be happy enuf if u leechers got kicked off

in saying that i do download a fair bit now n then, but of late my service has deteriated quite a bit, random ping spikes to 200+ lasting hours and slow down's on transfers, quite painfull...

causal

I'm curious if there is/are specific area(s) affected, then where are they:

So would anyone who has received the letter post roughly whereabouts you're located, doesn't have to be too specific, e.g. Blanhardstown, or DublinXX etc.


causal

kin9pin

causal wrote:

I'm curious if there is/are specific area(s) affected, then where are they:

So would anyone who has received the letter post roughly whereabouts you're located, doesn't have to be too specific, e.g. Blanhardstown, or DublinXX etc.


causal

You might be right here. I haven't had a letter....yet....but I'm in Sandyford and have never noticed any contention or ping spikes. Maybe they are actually only contacting people in areas that are suffering slowdown?

On your other point, I agree I'd prefer a monthly limit rather than daily, but we'll just have to manage downloads a bit more.................until the new owners give us our 8MB completely uncapped service :rolleyes:

BigO

1Gb a day is grand, For god sake how much illegal music/videos can you listen to/watch?
p.s. don't answer its Rhetorical!

seamus

I think it's still just as clear as it was before. If you're consistently/regularly exceeding 1GB a day, then they'll contact you. Once or twice a month is fine.

Nietzschean

i'm in D4, very edge tho beside ringsend.......(Up beside google , i wanna fibre link into them tbh )

carrotcake

tallaght. never noticed any problems

Jonnie_Onion

Got the letter.

D12.

No contention issues.


Guess I'll just have to throttle my downloads with netlimiter.

A program that would switch your pc off when you've downloaded a certain amount would be so cool.

Infini

Ran a few ping tests on a couple of site here and in the US and Europe. Average 45 on all of them. Also NTL phoned me today. I told them that I was aiming more towards the monthly cap rather than the daily one. Also asked about possible speed upgrades however he said he didn't know anything about it and it was to do with the marketing department. The seem to be gathering feedback from some of the high users. Also it seems they sent out the letters to try and keep the network optimised. Sounds like its coming under heavy pressure these days.

MrVestek

Hrm the only ever slowdown I've noticed on the NTL network was about four weeks ago when I couldn't get a proper connection to the NTL network anyway (was connecting to the local node but not getting past the gateway onto the net).

Enforcing a cap on any service tbh annoys me, I mean you're paying them enough for the server in the first place and you should be able to do whatever the hell you frigging want with it (as long as it's not something highly illegal like messing with kiddie porn or whatever).

Anyways couldn't you come up with the kind of excuse like 'ohh sorry well the website or whatever doesn't really give me an indication of the bandwidth I'm using, so I have no idea when I'm going over the cap if I'm downloading... ehhhh... 'Linux ISOs' ;-)

Just use an excuse like that. Now, this may prompt them to just put a monitor for it on the site but then where's the harm in that? I don't usually download alot but lately I've been downloading songs, albums and various epsides of the simpsons and enterprise so I might have gone over the 1 gig limit once or twice.

Caps annoy me so much tbh, and there's always a backup like someone noticed in Smart's, that says they can enforce a cap any time they want. Once upon a time NTL didn't even have a guideline, let alone a cap.

Caps are for wearing tbh, not for imposing on innocent (yeh right) broadband users.

JimboPope

I was one of the first to get NTL broadband when it first came out and at that stage there were no caps whatsoever. The contract i signed was for no caps so i'm wondering now if they can enforce this on me. I do download a good bit and would easily exceed the 30GB per month usage thingy. I havent received any letter yet but i'm guessing one is on the way. Have i a leg to stand on if i complain about the situation?

Nietzschean

they would have had it in the T&C's that they were subject to change without notice..

MrVestek

I remember when I first got NTL and I read through the contract seeing as I'd be the one paying for it and I remember it saying something along the lines of 'NTL reserves the right to change it's contract with you including it's terms and conditions without notifying you of such changes'.

That's obviously what they did tbh.

causal

It seems it would boil down to a point of law. i.e. is a contract valid which states that one party may change the contract without prior notification or even agreement from the other party to the contract.

I don't know the answer to that. Anyone want to be a test case

causal

MrVestek

Hopefully it's not, so I can demand 10Mbps of bandwidth in compensation... synchronus

RicardoSmith

Kernel wrote:

Yeah I have heard they are doing this lately. There service is overpriced compared to the latest offerings. What are they going to do if you continue to break the cap? Cancel your subscription? Grand, we'll just go to smart... faster, and cheaper.

Well since my land line doesn't pass the test, I don't have that choice.

BigO wrote:

1Gb a day is grand, For god sake how much illegal music/videos can you listen to/watch?
p.s. don't answer its Rhetorical!

I don't get how you can go past that on a daily basis for the entire month. Theres no way you could watch, listen to that much material even if you did download it. Even if it was distros, you hardly need to download those every day.

I haven't got the letter, and have been having problems with connecting and erratic pings for ages. D.15.

Giblet

Very funny little game you have going on Mick...

Infini

Well if things keep up like this then I'l just move to IBB. I don't have time for a 1GB a day cap. A 40GB a month cap I can handle but at 1GB a day, christ it'll just become a major inconvenience and then an annoyance. :mad:

penexpers

Seriously, how can you use 1GB a day?

Infini

Old TV shows, Linux ISO's, Free games, OST's,etc. take your pick. :rolleyes:

Mutant_Fruit

www.thetradersden.org

(as soon as it comes online you'll see what i mean). One single torrent can easily be over 1 gig. And no, it isn't a warez site. A gig a day is easy when a video encoded in DVD format is a mere 4 gigs...

EDIT: Streaming full quality MP3's also takes a fair whack of bandwidth. Average mp3 bitrate is 200... Its for when i'm in college and want to listen to my collection. Dead handy. Admittedly, thats upload not download though...

bk

Infini wrote:

Well if things keep up like this then I'l just move to IBB. I don't have time for a 1GB a day cap. A 40GB a month cap I can handle but at 1GB a day, christ it'll just become a major inconvenience and then an annoyance. :mad:

Interestingly IBB is now looking at potentially implementing a cap of about 30GB, they are talking about it over on another thread.

In fairness almost every company has a cap and NTL's is one of the biggest and they seem to be quiet fair about it. UTV start charging you (1 cent odd per mb) the second you go over the 8/16GB cap or cut you off for the rest of the month, similiarly with Digiweb.

Actually these letters are the best evidence yet that NTL are about to increase the speeds to 1/2/3mb. With everyone on NTL's network likely to get much higher speeds, they understandably want to put some constrant on what poeple download so the network doesn't ground to a halt and their expenses explode.

Infini

True but I'd prefer the monthly 40GB cap rather than a 1GB a day cap simply because the former would be easier to manage and would be tolerable rather than an inconvenient 1 size doesn't fit all daily cap.