According to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), any entity providing broadband Internet access service shall publicly disclose accurate information regarding the network management practices, performance, and commercial terms of its broadband Internet access services sufficient to enable consumers to make informed choices regarding the purchase and use of such services, and entrepreneurs and other small businesses to develop, market, and maintain Internet offerings. Such disclosure shall be made via a publicly available, easily accessible website or through transmittal to the Commission. The purpose of the following is to fully comply with these transparency requirements mandated by the FCC.
- Network Management Practices:
- Blocking. Access Cable does not engage in any practices that block or otherwise prevent end user access to lawful content, applications, service, or non-harmful devices.
- Throttling. Access Cable does not engage in any practices (other than in reasonable network management elsewhere disclosed) that degrade or impair access to lawful Internet traffic on the basis of content, application, service, user, or use of a non-harmful device..
- Affiliated Prioritization. Access Cable does not engage in any practice that directly or indirectly favors some traffic over other traffic, including through use of techniques such as traffic shaping, prioritization, or resource reservation, to benefit an affiliate.
- Paid Prioritization. Access Cable does not engage in any practice that directly or indirectly favors some traffic over other traffic, including through use of techniques such as traffic shaping, prioritization, or resource reservation, in exchange for consideration, monetary or otherwise.
- Congestion Management. Congestion may be caused by capacity limits and bottlenecks in a service provider’s own network, malicious activity, or by limitations in the capacity of the middle mile transport facilities and services that many service providers must purchase from unrelated entities to carry the traffic of their customers between their service areas and the closest internet nodes. Although congestion in Access Cable’s network is rare, when it occurs, we determine the source of the problem, and increase the capacity of the affected portions of our network and/or of our middle mile routes where warranted. Any and all types of traffic are subject to our congestion management practices; no particular protocols or ports are targeted. Access Cable’s congestion management practices serve the purpose of eliminating bottlenecks and returning the end user experience back to normal. Access Cable considers congestion to occur when bandwidth usage on a given link or interface exceeds 90% of its designed capacity. Advanced network monitoring tools are examined periodically to aid in our awareness of congestion. The typical frequency of congestion on Access Cable’s network is approximately 5 times per year or less. Access Cable has a usage limit of 1 Terabyte per calendar month, per subscriber modem, and reserves the right to throttle these high volume users during times of congestion, without notice.
- Application-Specific Behavior. Access Cable does not block or rate control specific protocols or protocol ports; nor do we modify protocol fields in ways not prescribed by the protocol standard. Access Cable does not otherwise inhibit or favor certain applications or classes of applications.
- Device Attachment Rules. In order to promote an exceptional end user experience, Access Cable has approved the following DOCSIS cable modems to be used on its network: Arris DG2740, Arris DG860, Arris CM820, Arris TG2472, Arris TG862, Arris TM822. Other DOCSIS 3.0 cable modems may be used on our network, but Access Cable does not expect their performance to be that of the above mentioned devices, and reserves the right to refuse the connection of a particular modem not on its approved list. Furthermore, all VoIP telephone subscribers are required to rent an EMTA mentioned in this paragraph; customer owned EMTA’s are not allowed.
- Security. Access Cable seeks to address the threats posed by harmful and unwanted traffic and reserves the right to protect the security and integrity of its network and its customers by any lawful means it deems appropriate. Viruses, worms, denial of service attacks (DOS, DDOS), and the use of malicious software such as spyware, can adversely affect our network and harm customers’ computers, impair quality of service, compromise their data, and harm third parties as well. However, Access Cable is not responsible for any property damages or loss of revenue due to malicious traffic entering or sourcing from our Autonomous System (AS). Access Cable employs certain practices on a case by case and as-needed basis to protect its network and its customers against third–party attacks. These practices could be triggered if Access Cable detects traffic levels that significantly exceed certain baselines. A common example is a denial of service attack (DOS, DDOS) targeting an Access Cable broadband subscriber, or group of subscribers; in this scenario, we reserve the right to disable any and all subscriber modems that we think may be the target of such attack, without notice, for as long as we deem necessary. If such an attack is not addressed, all subscribers on our network could be left without service due to resulting abnormal traffic spikes (bottlenecks).
- Performance Characteristics:
- Service Description. Access Cable provides its customers with a variety of high-speed broadband service plans from which to choose, with speed tiers ranging from 15 Mbps to 100 Mbps. We use a hybrid fiber optic and coaxial cable architecture (HFC). This is the same architecture deployed by many larger service providers in the United States. Fiber optic cable feeds into many different communities/neighborhoods where the signal is transferred onto coaxial cable, which is then fed into the homes and business. We also offer a fiber-based service to our businesses with speeds up to 1 Gbps. To know the plans currently available to you, please contact your local office.
- Expected Speed and Latency. Access Cable provisions its customers’ modems and engineers its network with the expectation that customers will enjoy the broadband service speeds to which they subscribe. However, Access Cable does not guarantee that a customer will achieve those speeds. Access Cable advertises its speeds as “up to” a specific level based on the tier of broadband service to which a customer subscribes. The actual speed that a customer will experience while using the service depends upon a variety of conditions, many of which are beyond the control of Access Cable as an Internet Service Provider (ISP). Access Cable speeds and packages are based upon a wired connection to a customer’s computer. Customer’s using a wireless connection will not see accurate speed test results. Actual speeds are impacted by network congestion of Access Cable facilities, as well as the capacity and congestion of middle mile transport facilities of Access Cable’s upstream providers. We frequently find customers who are “maxing out” their provisioned speed, who can fix their service issues, including speed and packet loss, if they upgrade to a higher speed/package. This often happens when multiple user devices inside a home are connected to a legacy tier of service.
Access Cable customers are encouraged to test their speed themselves. While there are many speed tests that measure internet performance, we have found the following to provide the most accurate results: www.verizon.com/speedtest, and www.speakeasy.net. Please note, however, that all speed tests have limitations and flaws. Each of these tests measure limited aspects of an ISP’s speed and therefore must be seen as a guide rather than a definitive measurement of performance. Any customer who is not satisfied with their speed is highly encouraged to contact their local customer service representative, and we will investigate the concern.
Latency is another measurement of internet performance. Latency is the time delay in transmitting or receiving packets on a network. Latency is primarily a function of the distance between two points of transmission, but also can be affected by the number and quality of the network or networks used in transmission. Latency is typically measured in milliseconds, and generally has no significant impact on typical everyday internet usage. As latency varies based on any number of factors, most importantly the distance between a customer’s computer and the ultimate internet destination, it is not possible to provide customers with a single figure that will define latency as part of a user experience. Access Cable has no basis for saying what level of latency should be expected by any particular user at any particular time. It is noteworthy that we rarely find latency to be the underlying cause of a customer’s application specific issue.
- Suitability of the Service for Real-time Applications. Access Cable broadband internet is suitable for Real-time Applications.
- Impact of Non-Broadband Internet Access Service Data Services. Access Cable offers Voice-over-IP (VoIP) telephone service to its customers. These VoIP services share network capacity with data (broadband) use. In order to accommodate the technical requirements of VoIP service, Access Cable gives VoIP traffic priority in its network over general data (broadband) traffic. However, because VoIP services use relatively little bandwidth, VoIP services are not likely to affect the performance of Access Cable’s broadband service. Although all services are affected at any given time by the total usage of all services, Access Cable’s provision of specialized services such as VoIP does not adversely affect its provision of broadband internet services.
- Commercial Terms of Service:
Finally, the FCC requires ISPs to disclose the terms on which they make their services available:
- Price. Access Cable’s monthly recurring prices for residential and commercial broadband internet services, cable television, and voice services can be learned by calling one of our local offices, or by calling us toll free at 1-877-821-2288. Prices may vary by region, are subject to change over time, may be based on current promotions, and are dependent on a customer’s particular needs. We lease standard cable modems for $3.95 per month, and modems with a built-in wireless router for $6.95 per month (please read our device attachment rules above). Static IP addresses are available to business customers for an additional $10 per month, per ip address. Most of our service offerings do not involve contracts; therefore, we assess no fees for early termination. New customers are required to pay their first month, and each subsequent month – in advance. An installation fee may or may not be charged. Please ask a local Access Cable representative. If a customer disconnects his or her service, we will refund any money owed to the customer. All payments are due by the 10th of the month (current service month); any account that is not paid in full by the 10th of each month is subject to a $5.00 late fee. Any account that is disabled due to non-payment is subject to a $20.00 re-connection fee. These prices are subject to change.
Access Cable customers are permitted 1 Terabyte (TB) of total internet usage per calendar month for all speeds and packages. This number includes the amounts of data each customer uploads and downloads per month. Customers may be charged fifty cents ($.50) for each additional Gigabyte (GB) used over 1 TB per calendar month. Customers are responsible for tracking their usage. This can be done by choosing the “My Account” tab on the main menu of our website. Customers may contact us for assistance. In most instances, Access Cable will contact customers in an effort to find a solution to their high data usage before billing them.
- Privacy Policies. Access Cable retains and stores certain traffic information (such as the identity of the customer using a particular IP address during a specific period) for such time as data is useful for network administration or troubleshooting. Such data, if available, is given to local, state, and Federal law enforcement agencies subject to a subpoena or court order. Access Cable does not collect, store or use traffic information to profile its customers in order to sell additional services to them, or for similar non-network management purposes.
- Redress Options. Any customers or potential customers with complaints or questions should call their local office, or our corporate office at 606-677-2444. Emails may be sent to cable@accesshsd.net.